Tough Call
by Maia2
Summary: COMPLETE! There are games being played at all levels, what are they and who is being played? Max goes into heat while Alec is out of town, they discover emotional investment is only the beginning of something much greater.ALTERNATE ending posted!(ch24&25)
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: I don't own any of them. 

Timeline: before LAtR and obviously FN. 

Sumary: Response to Pai's Not My Heat Challenge. Max goes into Heat and gets pregnant, but not by Alec. 

A/N: I'm not really a writer, so I hope this is understandable. J - This is for Pai, for her wonderful ideas and infie, for suggesting I post here. 

**Tough Call**

A baby

_The mother of..- Max felt her knees give and would have fallen to the ground had a strong pair of arms not supported her. She felt dizzy. A baby. She was pregnant. And yet somehow she wasn't surprised. Maybe she'd known it all along. Perhaps fear had been a part of her depression._

------------ 

_2 weeks earlier:_

"Hey Maxie!" Alec said coming to sit on the bench she was crouched beside tying her shoelaces. He was having a very nice view of her cleavage and he smiled. She raised her eyes and, noticing where his eyes were lingering, whacked him on the side of his head. He looked up, but the grin was still on his lips. 

"Don't you have anything better to do?" She barked. 

"Not really" He looked very young when he smiled like that, mischief shining in his eyes. She wondered what he was up to, but of course, she wouldn't ask him. She stood up and walked past him, her I-don't-give-a-damn mask plastered on her beautiful face. He sprang from the seat to follow her and she had to put a lot of effort into suppressing a smile, he looked so eager to tell her something. It was contagious. 

When he started to follow her inside the bathroom she turned abruptly "What?" 

"You are not gonna believe it" When she didn't ask, he continued "The Romanov Family Exhibition will be arriving in Salem tomorrow!" he announced happily. 

"Right, and you want to be there because… you are so close to the children? Let me guess, playmates at that exclusive school you attended in Paris. Or was it the one in Vienna?" 

"Very funny" he said, annoyed at her lack of understanding "During the revolution some of their jewelry was smuggled out of Russia. They have this necklace that's worth at least a quarter of a million in the black market. And guess who's got a buyer" He smirked smugly. 

"You are unbelievable! Will you ever grow up?" 

"Oh, come on, Max. Think about it. How did this museum people get the piece? They bought it from someone who stole it first. So how's that different from what we'll be doing?" 

"We? Excuse me, I don't think I heard you correctly" she glared at him. 

"It's a two men job. You know you want to" he put on his most innocent face. 

"Let's just say for the sake of argument, that I –" she was interrupted by the sound of her beeper. She rushed to the pay phone, leaving a frustrated Alec standing by the lockers, mimicking her `Oh, Logan, it's you…´ 

When she came back, the moment was lost. *damn* 

"Out of the way" she snapped "some of us have important things to do" and she left without even glancing back at him. 

Fine, he would get someone else. Yeah, right. Where the hell was he gonna get somebody else? Not like he could take Joshua… He thought briefly about 511, he would have been perfect, except Alec didn't know where he was right now. 

It would have been so much easier… He knew he could still talk her into it, but he was tired of constantly begging her. He would have to do it alone. *Let her come looking for me tonight when her EO assignment requires my help* He went home to gather what he needed and was soon heading out of Seattle. 

----------- 

Max was dragging her feet as she climbed up the steps to Joshua's house. This was not going to be easy. He was going to make her beg and she would have to go with him to get the blasted necklace. 

Actually, the second part wasn't so bad. She would never admit it to him, but she was looking forward to it. She had missed the excitement lately. And if she were completely honest with herself, she'd have to acknowledge she enjoyed heists even more since Alec was around. His incessant yapping was... nice. She liked not going in alone and knowing he had her back. 

But she did not want to go in right now and ask for his help. 

Joshua was reading on the couch when she came in "Hey Big Fella. How are you doing today?" 

"Joshua good. Max staying for Mac and cheese?" he asked hopefully. 

"Not tonight, Josh, no. Uhm... Alec around?" 

Joshua shook his big head "Alec out of town. Business trip. Be back in three days" 

"Oh, OK." Max stood in the middle of the room, unsure what to do next *Alec gone? But he... I... we...*** She turned to leave, muttering a good bye to Joshua. **

As she drove her Ninja the lost expression was still marring her features. Never, not even for a second had she thought he would leave without her. He had said it was a two men job. Who else did he know anyway? No one. She and Joshua were his only family. It hit her then and there. Family. He was her family now. Not in the same way Zack or Jondy or any of her other siblings, but he was still family. 

And she had let him down. Again. It wasn't that the heist was important in itself. It was... He had asked for her help and she had turned him down. `I'm here if you need to talk or something´ her own words mocked her. 

She wanted to go to Salem right now, but she had promised Logan she would plant that stupid microphone in that stupid Senator's office for some stupid E.O. mission. 

But she would make it up to him, she resolved. 

---------- 

And two days later it had happened. 

She had thought they'd fixed, but she'd obviously been wrong. She had spent the entire day going from endless push-up sessions to ice cold showers. 

Just when she thought she couldn't handle it any more she heard someone entering through the living-room window. *Alec. He's back!* She rushed to the bedroom door, but it was opened before she could reach it. She jumped at the lean body that presented itself before her. He immediately grabbed her buttocks with one hand while the other reached behind her to draw her mouth to his. Somehow through her haze she realized it wasn't him and tried to pull away. But his lips were already on hers, kissing her expertly. And her hormones were working overtime. She stopped fighting as he threw her onto the bed. 

------------ 

Alec walked inside Jam Pony, carrying the necklace in his pocket. It hadn't gone as swiftly as he had planned. He'd been stranded there watching the motel room's ceiling for a week. The damn display had been delayed in LA. He had gone to check out the building where it was to be held. He now knew it inside and out. Of course, he'd known it the first time he went in. The other five times had been superfluous. But he was not gonna go back to Seattle empty handed. Nope, he stayed right there in Salem. Besides, he had enjoyed the blizzard. 

He should have taken it directly to his buyers, especially with the delay and all. But he had to show it to Max. Let her see what she had missed. 

Only, Max wasn't there. When he asked OC she had shaken her curls and said her Boo was not feeling well. He went on to his deliveries thinking *Eyes Only*. 

But as the day wore on, he started to think OC would have told him if she was on one of Logan's foolish errands, if only to have him help cover up for Max. And then he remembered Cindy's concerned look and silently cursed himself. He turned in his clipboard absentmindedly and went to the door, decided to pay Max a little visit. 

He was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. He turned around ready to strike when he saw who it was and broke into a welcoming smile "51..- Biggs!" He patted the other X5 on the shoulder "How are y-...?" his voice died down as he realized Biggs had not raised his eyes from the floor. "What's wrong?" He glanced him over. No, he could see no apparent wound and by the way his friend was standing he knew he could rule out anything physical. "Biggs?" 

Biggs seemed to be having a really hard time getting his voice out *That's a first* Alec frowned. 

"I came here last week looking for you" there was a long pause "I checked out your home address but you weren't there, so I came here. I remembered you telling me about this place, so... I met this guy. He said you were out of town. He said I should join him for a couple of beers, seeing as I was your friend. He was nice, for an ordinary. I beat him five times at pool." 

"Sketchy" Alec murmured, the hint of a smile tugging at his mouth. He had no idea where this was going. 

"Anyway, seeing as he was pretty wasted, I asked him if he had any idea where you were. He said he didn't, but I should ask Max or Original Cindy, cause they always seemed to know. I asked him if this Cindy was your girlfriend or something, you know, I wouldn't want to interrupt anything. He said it was cool, that OC was not into boys and Max had a boyfriend, but he was kinda old so he probably wouldn't be around and he gave me their address." He stopped and seemed to be trying to find the right words "I'm so sorry, I ... I didn't know. I got in through the window and..." 

A feeling of dread clasped Alec's throat. He was sure he did not want to hear what his friend was about to tell him. 

"I smelled them, the pheromones. And I stood by the window. But your friend had told me none of the girls were with you. And then I just stopped thinking. I just walked to this door and... I'm sorry" his voice broke. 

Alec took a step back as if someone had hit him. He shook his head in denial, his eyes were unfocussed and he had a knot at the pit of his stomach. He reached back for something to support him and leaned against a dumpster. 

Biggs seemed to find his voice again. "She, she was weeping afterwards. I tried to comfort her, but she was oblivious to my presence there. I didn't know what to do. I'd never made a girl cry in my life. I was feeling awful. And then in the middle of her weeping she said your name. It's like the world fell over me. I'm so sorry. I didn't know. I swear I would have left if I'd known. Pheromones or not. You have to believe that." He ran a hand through his hair, a self deprecating twist on his lips. "Damn!" 

Alec was sitting on the floor where he had slipped as Biggs was speaking. 

"Please say something. Hit me! Hell, kill me! I deserve it" the dark-haired man said. 

Alec looked at him and saw the pain and self loath in his friend's eyes. "Not. Your. Fault" he managed to get out in a whisper. 

Biggs's expression turned into one of total anguish "I'm leaving. Yes, I'm gonna, I'm gonna take off. I swear you'll never see me again" He looked at his best and only friend in the whole world one last time "I'm sorry" he said softly and left. 

Alec tried to stop him. At least a part of his brain tried. The rest of it seemed to be completely refusing to function, same as his entire body. He sat there for the longest time. Until someone bumped into him, pulling him off the limbo he'd been at for the last few hours. He got up, his feet taking him to a bar. He entered, but then decided he didn't want to be around other people. He headed home after picking up a few bottles. He did not want to run out of Scotch right now. 

---------- 

_Today_

Joshua was really worried. Alec had spent the past two days in the basement. And Max hadn't been around in over a week. Something was definitely wrong. He'd tried talking to Alec a few hours ago, but he had been out of it. Apparently all that alcohol had finally managed to knock down his Manticore defenses. 

He was pondering what to do when he heard Alec come up the stairs, his trademark smirk on his lips "Hey Josh, I'm gonna take a shower" as he disappeared into the bathroom. Joshua tilted his head to one side and blinked a few times. He then sat on the couch waiting for Alec to come out. 

When the door reopened he followed his wet friend to his room. Alec had a hand shuffling his hair and the other on the blue towel around his waist, ready to loose it, when he heard, or better did _not hear, the door he had just kicked shut. He looked questioningly at Joshua standing under the doorframe. _

"Alec OK?" 

"Yeah, I'm OK" Joshua looked at him dubiously, but seemed to decide it was better to leave it at that. 

"You think litl' fella all better now too?" 

Alec cringed imperceptibly "I'm sure she is" 

"Good. Joshua was getting hungry" 

Alec stopped in the act of putting on his turtleneck "What do you mean hungry?" 

"Max not been to see Joshua in over a week. Running out of food" 

"Shit!" was all Alec said before rushing to the door, one shoe on and trying to put on the other. 

When he heard the engine start, Joshua smiled and relaxed on the couch. Alec would take care of Max now *That's the plan*. 

-------------- 

He tried to concentrate on his driving, but it was no use, his thoughts kept wandering back to her. He had spent the last two days drowning himself in alcohol, but that had been no good either She just kept popping into his mind. Beautiful, sexy, alluring... out of reach. He didn't understand why Biggs's words had hit him so hard. 

At first it had been the shock. But then he realized what that awful feeling inside him was. Jealousy. He was jealous. Of his best friend. _He had been able to touch her, feel her, caress that silky olive skin, kiss those inviting lips... He had needed the whisky to get those images away from his head. _

He had realized he'd never been jealous before. Not like that. Sure, Max had thought she was in love with Logan, but they couldn't touch. And even if they could... those two had been `sort of´ together for a year and nothing had happened? Yep. No threat there whatsoever. 

But Biggs, that was a different story. He _knew Biggs. He still remembered Lola. He couldn't bare the thought of him touching his Max. _

That's when it had hit him the hardest. She was _not his. Even if he'd been there instead of Biggs. The next day she would not want to be around him. Or at best, she would go back to where they'd been before. Only more awkward. He wouldn't have been able to take it. Damn it, he was pathetic. He had been so depressed he'd finally given in to the bliss of sleep. _

He woke up to the sound of his phone, somewhere in his jacket. He had a vague idea of it ringing a couple of times before. He rummaged through his clothes looking for the damn thing, till his fingers stumbled onto something cold and smooth. *Shit!* He finally found his phone and looked at the number on the display. Just what he thought. He'd had them waiting for almost two weeks. He better get them the blasted thing before they got more anxious. 

He stretched and got up. God he was filthy! He ran up the stairs to take a shower. 

He made a resolution. He would go back to being his usual self. Nothing had changed, right? Everything was fine. He was OK. Not a care in the world – well except for his little unfinished jewelry business. But he did not care about _her in the least. _

He'd almost convinced himself when his dog-faced friend's words had hit him. 

She hadn't been to see Joshua in over a week?!? Shit! 

He remembered OC's concern the other day. And Biggs saying she was crying. And she hadn't gone to work. And all he'd done was lie in a basement, wallowing in self pity. He'd never forgive himself if something had happened to her. 

So much for his resolution. 

------------- 

She was curled into a ball. He stepped by the bed to look at her. She'd been crying. And he hadn't thought it was possible, but she was thinner than before. *God Max, what are you doing to yourself?* 

He saw an untouched glass of milk on the bedside table. *Cindy* he thought. As he bent down to grab it his nostrils widened and he dropped the glass to the floor, eyes fixed on the sleeping form lying in a tumble of sheets. He fell, sitting on the floor, barely wincing at the shattered pieces of glass that found their way through the jeans and into his flesh. 

It had been very faint, but he'd smelled it. She was pregnant. Max was pregnant. She was going to have a baby. Biggs's baby. He had to find him. He had to – What the hell was he thinking? Biggs was gone. And for two days now. Even through the shock he'd seen his face and heard his voice _You'll never see me again._ Alec knew the other X5. He could search the entire planet and he would still never find him. Biggs had made a promise to his CO _and_ his friend, he would _never_ brake it. 

Max had been right all along. He ruined everything. Now her baby didn't have a father because of him. He _was_ a screw up. 

Perhaps Logan could… yeah. He was the kind of guy who'd `understand´ and take the kid because it was hers. Yes, that's the way Logan would think of the baby, as _hers_. But he or she deserved so much more than that, to be loved, to be held, cherished, treasured. There was no way he'd let anyone … He stood up abruptly and placed a hand on Max's stomach. He smiled slightly and moved a strand of hair away from her face, his eyes shining with a strange light. 

----------- 

Max woke up slowly, stretching leisurely. She was feeling good. 

Something in the back of her mind was telling her that was odd, but she didn't want to think about it. She opened her eyes reluctantly, afraid of what she might find. It all came back to her like a blow to the head. She felt it again. The shame, the humiliation, and the sadness. That was the worst of all, this sadness that clung to her and she didn't know why… And yet, there was something different now. She felt this weird sensation of … peace. 

She got out of the bed, swaying a little. *Too much time without moving* Her stomach made a grumble. *_And_ without food* She went to the bathroom, bracing herself on the walls. 

She splashed some water into her face, avoiding the mirror. She did not want to see herself. Not yet. But a sparkle caught her eye and she glanced at the reflection. Her mouth fell open as she stared at the most beautiful creation of diamonds she'd ever seen. It was perfect, exquisite. And it was resting around her neck. 

----------- 

She was sitting on the couch, her hair still wet from the shower, when he arrived carrying a large box of pizza and … was that milk? 

"Hey" she said nervously. He smiled at her. A real smile. Her heart skipped a couple of beats. 

"I brought you something to eat" he was looking at her intensely. 

He was so handsome, how had she missed it before? He had the most beautiful hazel eyes, and the sweetest smile, and that strong, lean body..- she averted her eyes, ashamed. How could she be thinking like that? "Alec" she said, still looking away "there's something I have to tell you" She didn't know why, but she needed to tell him. She started speaking rapidly, to get it over with as soon as possible. "While you were away, I went into H..-" 

She was silenced by a tender finger on her lips. "I know" he said delicately. 

She looked into those green pools and saw the sincerity of his words. And she also saw he was smiling reassuringly at her. A warm feeling washed over her. 

The corners of her lips went up tentatively. 

She moved her head and that caused a rustle of rocks bouncing lightly against each other. She raised her hand to caress the stunning gems at her chest. "I thought you had a buyer. Quarter of a mill?" 

He raised his hand to unconsciously touch a fresh, recent cut on his left eyebrow. But shrugged, not taking his eyes from hers "I just thought it would look better on the mother of my child" 

The mother of..- Max felt her knees give and would have fallen to the ground had a strong pair of arms not supported her. She felt dizzy. A baby. She was pregnant. And yet somehow she wasn't surprised. Maybe she'd known it all along. Perhaps fear had been a part of her depression. She was going to have a baby. A little boy or girl to call her own. Someone to..- Her head came up sharply "_Your_ child?" 

He nodded seriously "Yes Max. That baby is already my child" he ran a finger along her cheek, his gaze never leaving her "Will you let me be its father?" 

Fin. 


	2. Decisions

Disclaimer: I don't own any of them. Oh, and I did use one line here that's not mine. (I just loved it when I saw that eppy) 

Timeline: before LAtR and obviously FN. 

Sumary: Response to Pai's Not My Heat Challenge. Max goes into Heat and gets pregnant, but not by Alec. 

A/N: I have to thank a few people: Pai, for insisting I write this and her wonderful ideas; CindyZ for checking it out and making great suggestions and corrections (all the prettiness is hers); and all of the people who reviewed. Thank you all SO MUCH. And of course to all the Nuns. 

Tough Call Decisions 

"_Will you let me be its father?_" Alec's words echoed in Max's head still. 

She was sitting on the edge of the Space Needle, looking down at the city without actually seeing it. She still couldn't believe she was pregnant. She didn't think she was ready to be anyone's mom. She was barely able to take care of herself, how was she supposed to look after a baby? Sure, she took care of Joshua, but he was a big guy. Babies were another thing altogether. They needed constant attention, someone around at all times… Even with her shark DNA she couldn't stretch herself that thin. 

*You're not the first single mom in the world, you know?* a little voice in her head announced. 

_Well, I don't think any of them is a genetically engineered bike messenger with cult loonies on her tail_

*Poor Max… Why is it that everything has to be a tragedy with you?* 

_Probably because everything is when it comes to me__. _

*Oh! Puh-lease! Give me a break. Besides, you don't have to be alone on this one* 

Alec's beautiful eyes shined in her mind *That's right, see?* the annoying little voice continued. 

_He did sound sincere…_

*Damn right he did!* 

_Max bit her lips and started to frown And he was sweet about it too…_

*Just `sweet´?* 

_He was being nice, wasn't he?_

*Where you not there?* 

_Uhm…, so I guess hitting him on the stomach was not the answer he deserved, huh?_

Alec was sitting in Max's bed, wincing as he applied alcohol on a nasty bruise just below his ribs. She just had to hit him exactly there. Darn woman had a radar for his sore spots. He let out a little laugh as he replayed the scene in his head. He should have known. This was Max, obviously the first thing she would do was beat him. It was her natural response to everything. Especially if she felt scared. She had just looked so lost and vulnerable… And he had meant every word. Only he should have been more careful, and say them a safe distance away. 

So now here he was, nursing his own wounds, waiting for her to return. Because she would, once she had time to process everything. Maybe he should have given her more time between announcements, but he thought it was better this way. Now she could worry about having a baby, but knowing at the same time she didn't have to be alone. No matter what she decided, she had to know he was there. 

And she would want to talk this out with him. Whatever she thought of him, he was the only one she could discuss it with. He was her own kind. 

He put his sweater back on and sat on the couch, eating a cold slice of pizza while he waited for her. 

Max's shoulders were crumpled as she opened the door to her apartment. She'd gone to Joshua's looking for Alec, but he hadn't been there. She went to his old place, but to no avail. She'd even gone to Crash, maybe he was having drinks – being hit when trying to be nice and all. But he wasn't there either. He hadn't been there all night, from what they'd told her. Where the hell was he? She had started to get angry. Typical, the first sign of trouble and he disappeared. So much for his offer. He was just an irresponsible, insensible… 

Her thoughts stopped as she saw the sleeping form on her couch. He'd been there, waiting for her all along. 

Of course he had. When had Alec not been there when she needed him? Irresponsible? He had offered to be the father of a kid she hadn't known she was carrying. He could have said nothing and she'd never have known he knew. Why was it she always jumped to the worst possible conclusions when it came to him? He was a great friend, always there, never demanding anything in return. Maybe that was part of it. He was so unobtrusive about his help, it went unnoticed most of the times. 

She sighed and went to take the empty glass from his hand, noticing the bruised knuckles but forgetting them immediately as he opened his eyes. He smiled at her, eyes still a little blurry, only to jump from the couch and back a few steps as complete wakefulness assaulted him, raising a hand as if to protect himself. 

"I guess I deserve that," were her words, watching his defensive stance. 

"Why, Maxie, that sounded awfully close to an apology." 

"No. That was me saying you were right." She stepped closer to him, "_This_ is an apology: I'm sorry I hit you. It was totally uncalled for and you did not deserve it," she stood on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. 

"Uhm, Max?" She smiled at his dumbfounded, disbelieving expression. 

"Yeah, yeah. But you better not get used to it, cuz that's probably the last one of those you're gonna get from me, ok?" she said belligerently. 

He smiled at her. They stood there for a few minutes, neither of them moving. Finally Alec motioned to the half empty box on the small table. "You eaten anything?" 

She glanced at it and her stomach growled. She sat down on the sofa grabbing a slice and sighed at the first bite. "I was starving." 

The tension lost, he filled a glass with milk and handed it to her, sitting by her side and watching her eat. 

"So…" he started. 

"So…" she said playing with a strand of her hair. 

"You ok?" 

She nodded, and then "I'm not quite accustomed to the idea yet, but…" she shrugged. His smile widened. He had been sure she would come to terms with it, but it was good to hear her say it. 

He cleared his throat and said "I… uhm… I want you to know I meant what I said before," 

"I know." she whispered softly. 

He continued, not having heard her "I know you think I'm a screw up, but I would not let you or the baby down." 

"You are not a screw up, Alec. I know you wouldn't let us down." They smiled at each other again. 

"Hey, Max? Not that I'm complaining, but I did expect more of a fight from you." 

She faked a hurt expression "From me?" 

"Yeah, you know, bitchy old Max, yelling at me…" He expected her to kick him right there, but she surprised him once again. 

"Yeah, well, she decided to take a break, but don't worry, she'll be back tomorrow, full force," she said chewing on the last bit of pizza. "As a matter of fact, she's gonna come back tonight and kick your ass if you don't go get me another pizza. Right about now." 

"Well, since you ask so nicely…" he got up and headed to the door "Vegetarian, right?" he closed the door just in time for the glass to shutter on it. 

"Hey, boo," OC smiled at seeing her friend sitting on the couch, an empty box in front of her "Ya finally decided to join the world of the living?" Max gave her a half smile "So, ya wanna tell Original Cindy what was wrong with her girl?" 

"I've been a little depressed." At OC's raised eyebrow, she corrected, "Fine, a lot depressed. But I'm alright now." 

"Boo, I seen ya depressed. An' where you were is way beyond that," OC countered, a hand on her hip. "So, where's your boy?" 

"He's not my..- How did you know he was here?" 

"Cuz, honey, Original Cindy been trying to get ya out o' this bitch and nothing, she mentioned Joshua, and still nothing, she even called Logan and nothing. And now pretty boy's back from wherever he was an' big coincidence, all of a sudden you aiight? Nah, OC ain't buying that. Just surprised it took him this long." 

Max blushed a little. "Yeah well, he made me mad enough, I had to forget about my depression and get up to kick his ass," she said, trying to sound nonchalant about it. 

"Well, boo. Isn't that what he always does?" Original Cindy replied seriously. 

Max opened her mouth to speak but closed it again. Max had been lying, but OC did have a point there. She'd never thought about it that way. 

"So spill it, boo" OC interrupted her thoughts. 

"Huh?" 

"I swear girl. You're worst than that computer freak o'yours. Useless talking to." 

"I'm not..-" *Oh-my-god Logan!* 

She had forgotten about Logan. Completely. He hadn't even crossed her mind. Not during her heat, not in the following days, not today when she was considering having a baby. How the hell did that happen? Sure, they weren't together, but he was the love of her life, right? And she had forgotten about him?!? 

OC watched Max's eyes go wide as she stopped talking. So her boo had come out of a mean depression and not even thought about her saint, can't-do-no-wrong non-boyfriend? She tilted her head and looked at her friend speculatively. "Aiight, boo, what's going on with you an' that gorgeous transgenic o'yours?" 

"Did I hear someone mentioning me?" Alec said from the door, two large bags of food in his hands. He was smiling smugly, but his eyes were fixed on Max. He looked back at OC and asked with a smirk "You were talking about me, weren't you? I mean I know there are other transgenics on the loose, but there couldn't possibly be any other gorgeous ones, right?" 

OC saw straight through his attempt to lighten the mood and change the subject "Aiight, suga'. Leave it there for now, but you," she finished looking pointedly at Max "You gonna have to have a looong heart to heart with Original Cindy," before turning and going to her room. 

Alec sighed as he watched her go. He'd arrived just in time to hear OC's comment about Logan. He'd seen Max's surprise at being reminded of him. He'd been about to leave, and let Max mope over her wonder-boy, when OC started asking about him and Max. He'd seen her panic and once again had come to her rescue. Sure, he hadn't fooled OC, but he'd gotten the time alone with Max he needed to sort things out. 

He sat beside her once again. "I guess we have to come up with something to tell people, huh? Maybe we can stall it with the others, but OC here won't be fooled for long." He ran a hand through his hair, he wasn't thrilled about having to address this so soon. "Look Max, what I said… you don't have to feel any pressure. Just because I want to be the father of your child, doesn't mean anything should change between us, you know?" he paused, "I mean I know you don't want any sort of relationship with me, and that you're with Logan, well sort of, so…" he shrugged. 

Max turned around so he wouldn't see her pained expression. She didn't know why it had hurt her to hear him say nothing would change among them, but it did. 

He continued speaking. "I just need to know what we're gonna tell people. You know, about you having a baby that I'm the father of…" he smiled sadly at how weird that had sounded. "I guess the truth? You went into heat, had sex, got pregnant," she shrugged in response. "I mean if – sorry, when people see I'm around all the time they'll just assume it was me, right?" He stood up "But will that be all right with you? People assuming you and I… you know," He blabbed on, as if to himself, "Yeah, except … you think they're gonna believe you and me had sex? You're always proclaiming to the world how much you hate me," he paced around the room, not noticing her blush "Well, they have to know it was heat, not like we could do anything about it," he looked at her, with a frown of concentration. "It's not very flattering, but hey, we have to make some sacrifices, right?" He tried to joke, but failed to smile himself. 

"Actually, I don't think it will be such a surprise, Alec," Max said nervously. 

He stopped walking "It's not?" He started to make another remark, but noticed her averted eyes "What is it Max? Why won't it be?" 

"Well, it's kinda like, some people might think we are together already." 

Alec laughed "And why would anyone think that?" 

"Uhm, because I uhm, might have made some comments that could have led this people to uhm… arrive at that conclusion?" 

Alec could not believe his ears "You _told_ people you and I were together? When? Why?" 

"It's just… Logan saw us when you were leaving my place that day and he just assumed… and he'd been… I had to push him away." 

"Yeah, so blame it on Alec, 'cause he's just the kind of jerk that'd steal another guy's girl!" He was furious! "So tell me Max, who else just _assumed_ I was the bad guy? Sketchy? OC? Nice to know all of my friends think I'm such a bastard." 

"I'm sorry, okay? I never thought..-" 

"That's the problem, Max. You never do. You just act and damn the consequences. I'm sick of it. Just tell me whatever you decide is more appropriate to tell everyone and then I'll just go along with it. As usual!" he stormed out, but not fast enough to hide the hurt look on his eyes from Max. 

It was his turn up on the Space Needle. He knew he'd overreacted. Hell, he had suggested the same thing to her just minutes before. It was the best way to deal with it. And it probably had been the best way to deal with it when she had used it. But it still hurt. 

He tried so hard to be better than that. Even earlier today he'd volunteered to be the father of this kid, and still he'd made no attempt at getting her, as much as he had wanted to. He just couldn't do that. He didn't really like Logan and he knew he was wrong for Max, but he knew the older man was basically a good guy and he loved Max in his own way, even if Alec didn't understand it. 

Well, there was no helping it now, was there? 

The worst part was knowing Max had so little consideration towards him. He knew she didn't think that badly of him, it was the fact that she never thought about his feelings. She probably thought he had none. 

When he came back Max was asleep on the couch. Alec wondered distractedly if her pregnancy was modifying her sleeping habits. He opened the refrigerator and took out some of the food he'd brought earlier. He stiffened when he heard the soft rustle of feet against the floor. He didn't want to face her, didn't want to see the contempt in those beautiful dark eyes. He took a deep breath, plastered his happy-go-lucky expression on his face. 

"Hello Cindy," he said, smiling as he turned to look at her. 

She was looking at him seriously. "Now you, suga' are going to come clean an' tell Original Cindy what the hell is going on," she concentrated so much on his features, that she was able to catch a glimpse of surprise in his eyes, before the mask was back on. 

Max hadn't told her. That was weird. He thought she would have embraced the opportunity to talk to OC alone. "You should probably ask her." 

"Oh no, honey, cuz I know my girl an' she just gonna keep stalling an' running." 

"And what does that have to do with me?" he asked, moving the food around the plate with his fork, not eating anything. 

"Oh it's got everything to do with you, super soldier. You the only one who can cause such a change of mood in my boo." 

He'd been prepared for it, but it still hurt like hell "Yes, of course." 

OC watched with a mixture of awe and fear how his stunning smiling face turned into a blank expression, his eyes completely devoid of emotion. She followed him to her own bedroom, where he sat on the edge of the bed, hands on his knees and started speaking, eyes fixed on a spot on the wall. 

"Max went into Heat. She had sexual intercourse," OC cringed at the harshness of his words, "The effectiveness rate of X5's breeding is 98.375% while the female is in Heat." 

It took her a second to move past the coldness in his voice and really understand what he had said. 

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. You telling me my boo is pregnant?" He nodded. "Oh, my…" she raised her hand to her forehead and stood in that awkward position for the longest time. 

When she found her voice again she asked Alec "So how come no one's ever introduced Original Cindy to this other Manticorean in town?" 

"Excuse me?" 

"Well, You just said she was with an X5. I'm asking who he is." 

"What makes you think it wasn't me?" he barely moved a muscle to speak. 

She narrowed her eyes at him "Well, for starters you weren't here when she went all cat-crazy," she pointed out matter-of-factly. 

He blinked, and OC realized it was the first time he'd done that since they'd come into this room. "You don't know that for sure." 

"Oh, yes I do, suga'." 

Alec looked at her, a tiny bit of confusion taking away the edge of his stare "How?" 

"If you had been here, boo, she'd never have had to face the last two weeks alone and depressed," she answered simply. 

Alec blinked twice before the mask he'd been wearing vanished from his face, leaving only a little boy's lost expression, his eyes searching his friend's face. 

OC kneeled in front of him and run a hand through his hair while she laid her other hand on top of his trembling ones. "Alec, I know you'd never do anything to make her suffer," she said reassuringly. 

"But before…you said I was the one… the mood swing…" He was a soldier damnit! Why couldn't he utter one logical sentence? 

"Oh, boo! I meant the one _out of depression_." She said softly. 

A smile tugged at his lips and he let it out, shocking OC with the shear power of it. 

And he sat there, watching this wonderful person stroking his hair, and marveled at how lucky he was. 

He had a friend. 

A real one. 


	3. Facing Facts

Disclaimer: I don't own any of them blah, blah, blah 

A/N: A very special thanks to Infie who is the greatest and checked this out for me and gave me a title J. And I want to thank all the Nuns and Monks cause you are great. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, it's really appreciated. 

A/N2: Sorry this took so long. 

**Tough Call **

**Facing facts **

Max woke up to the smell of eggs and bacon. Her eyes opened sharply as her enhanced sense of smell detected another fragrance: Oranges! She could not remember the last time she'd even seen, let alone eaten, a real orange. 

She stretched her entire body, her feline DNA apparent in every movement, and looked around. She was in her own bed. She was sure she had fallen asleep on the couch, waiting for Alec to come back, which he never did. Or at least she had _thought so. Cause there was no way OC could have carried her to her room, at least not without waking her. _

He had come back. After all she'd said and done, Alec had come back. She jumped from the bed and ran to the living-room area, glancing around. 

"He ain't here" OC said, popping her head from behind the kitchen counter. 

Max wasn't fast enough hiding her disappointment and OC shook her head. 

"Com'ere boo, sit down and eat." She handed Max a bowl of milk, the eggs and bacon and a glass of freshly made orange juice. 

"Where did you get all this?" 

"Where do you think?" 

Max blushed "Yeah, uhm, there's something I have to tell you" 

"What? That you're pregnant? Too late, boo. Why'd'ya think I made you all the food? Goodness of my heart?" she looked at Max sternly then. "And don't go thinking nothin' bad about my boy now, cause he did the right thing telling Original Cindy" 

Max blushed again, but she had to ask "Er… What did he say?" 

"He said you went into heat - which Cindy already knew. And that you were pregnant." At Max's uncertain look she added "I'm sorry boo, he really didn't want to say nothin' else but I knew he wasn't around when you were in heat, so he finally told me it was another X5." Max's head came up sharply at that, a puzzled look in her face, but OC was watching the food in the stove and didn't notice. "Anyway, boo. The big question now:" she turned around to look at Max out of big probing eyes "What are you going to do now?" 

Max looked at her friend's concerned face and saw that no matter what she said, OC would be a hundred percent behind her. Her eyes moistened and she reached across the counter to grab the darker hand of her friend. She took a deep breath. "I'm gonna have it." 

"You sure about that, boo?" OC squeezed her hand. 

Max just nodded, her eyes not leaving OC's face, and so she watched a beautiful smile brighten up her friend's features. 

"Aiight boo. So… what can Original Cindy do to help?" 

They hugged and then ate their breakfast, talking about babies, toys and cradles. 

----------------- 

Normal looked up as Max and OC walked into Jam Pony. "Nice of you to join us ladies. Had a nice vacation Missy-Miss? 

"Not really, but thanks for asking." 

Both Normal and OC remained completely dumbfounded by Max's lack of hostility. 

"Hello guys," Max said shyly, coming to stand near Alec and Sketchy. She looked warily at Alec, unsure of how he'd respond. 

"Hey, Max! Good to have you back!" Sketchy said. 

"Hi, Maxie" Alec answered, his trademark smirk in place. For the first time since she'd met him, she was glad to see that cocky, arrogant smile of his. 

"Hey Sketchy!" OC came to stand besides Max "Hey, boo." 

Max watched a beautiful smile light OC's face as she greeted Alec. *Boo?* 

But her jaw dropped as she saw Alec smile back. The smirk was gone, leaving only joy. "Hey Cindy." He had smiled at her like that yesterday. A dark, awful feeling invaded her. Sadness. 

"Oh, people, before I forget, here's my new cell phone number." Max eyed him suspiciously. 

"What happened to your other phone, man?" Sketchy asked. 

"Oh, well, let's just say a lot of persistent females had my old number. It was getting tiresome." he said, the smirk back on his face, causing Sketchy to smile, OC to roll her eyes at him and Max to look at him strangely. He clapped his gloved hands and said "Okay guys, see you later, I'm off to sector eleven." 

Max followed him outside "All right, Alec, what the hell is going on?" 

"What are you talking about?" 

"Don't give me that crap!" 

"Max, I seriously don't know what you mean. Nothing's wrong." 

Max's eyes narrowed and he watched, fascinated, as she tried to keep her voice down "Why. Did. You. Change. Your. Phone. Number?" 

"I just told you." 

"Alec…" 

"Okay, fine. I lost the other one." 

She took a deep breath. "Alec, even I know you just buy a new one and get them to transfer your old line to it." He shrugged and smiled, but Max interrupted him before he could make another stupid comment. "AND I noticed your bruised knuckles." 

"I was feeling frustrated because of the phone thing and hit a wall?" he tried, knowing she wouldn't fall for it. 

"ALEC!" 

"All right." He sighed "You know the Romanov thing I told you about?" Max unconsciously raised her hand to her neck. "And you know how I had a buyer?" She nodded "Well let's just say he isn't very happy with me right now." 

"Oh, come on! It's a free market. The guy's got to know you'd sell to the highest bidder…" 

He just stared at her "How many people do you think could afford that kind of purchase? And besides, he was under the impression I was playing him." 

At Max's questioning look, he reluctantly added, "It was supposed to be a simple job. In, out, back in Seattle on Monday. Only the exhibition was delayed at L.A. for some reason, so I had to stay there for a week. And then a couple more days till I made it back here. I should have taken it to them then, but first I .. uhm…I wanted to …uhm… show it to you so you could admire it." 

"You wanted to rub it in my face, show me what I had missed." she corrected him. 

He smiled sheepishly and shrugged. "So, when you didn't come to work I went to see you. And then I decided you'd probably like to have it, so…" he shifted his weight from foot to foot, uncomfortable. "Anyway, I went to see the guy, to tell him I didn't have the piece to sell anymore and he didn't take that so well. Neither did the other four guys that were with him." 

"I'm sure they were even less happy after you left." she said, looking at the cut barely visible now on his eyebrow. 

A half smile played in his lips along with a feral look. "Yes, a lot less happy." 

"So, what about the phone?" 

"Oh, that. Well, they had my number, so I thought it would be easier if I just changed it." 

"Okay" Max said. 

It was not okay, of course. Oh, the phone thing she believed. As well as the part with the buyer and his goons. Of course she was sure it hadn't gone as smoothly as he made it sound; they'd probably had guns, heavy ones, and five armed men against one, transgenic or not, was not a fair fight. They must have knocked his gun away from him at some point, which would explain the knuckles. But that wasn't what was bothering her. He could handle that and more. 

It was the _other parts he wasn't saying. _

Like those two extra days to get back to Seattle. Why the hell _two days? Especially if he'd had a week to do the recon. _

And she might still be a little dazed by the being pregnant thing, but she could still add, and a week plus two extra days didn't account for the time elapsed till he came to see her. There were a couple of days unaccounted for. He had _not gone to see her immediately after he got back. _

Of course, there could be a million explanations for that, the simplest one, he hadn't thought about her till two days after. But that didn't make sense, not when he had a quarter of a mill worth of jewelry and an anxious buyer waiting. Plus he had said it in a way that made it sound like a continuous flow of events. Why would he do that unless he was hiding something? 

And then there was the conversation with OC that morning. How did he know _that? _

"What are you not telling me?" 

"That's about it." he answered evasively. 

Since when was Alec so secretive? She snorted at herself. Who was she trying to kid? He talked all the time, but never really said anything. It had never bothered her before. She had been happy knowing only superficial Alec. 

"Alec!" 

Why was he lying to her? She was Alec's only friend, why wasn't he telling her everything? She felt hurt, dejected. And she ignored that little voice in her head telling her she'd never given him the chance to open up to her, that she was always judging him, that she never really paid attention to him. No. They had a bond of sorts now. And he was lying to her. Anger rose inside her again. 

He knew she was wondering about the holes in his story, but he really didn't want to get into it now, not when the image of his friend leaving was still so fresh in his memory. "Seriously Max, nothing else of significance." 

"Oh great, Alec! Just lie to me!" she shot him an aggravated look "Is this the kind of father you are going to be?" Max gasped the very second the words left her mouth. That had been a low blow. Really low. 

She watched his eyes widen and then lose all expression. 

Alec had thought it wasn't possible for him to feel worse than he had this past couple of days. He had been wrong. 

_Is this the kind of father you are going to be? _

That had hit too close to home. 

And the worst part was she didn't even have a clue. 

He was a liar. He was a screw up. But that wasn't it. 

All the thoughts he had been trying to put in the back of his mind since he decided to be that baby's father came back to haunt him. 

He was a KILLER. 

He had taken human life. Sometimes in cold blood. He had been ordered to do so, yes, but he'd done it all the same. 

He had let himself forget that. How could he have, even for a second? He was a lousy example. Hardly someone a kid should look up to. What did he have to offer? A familiar ruthless coldness swept through him, leaving him empty. 

A voice was trying to penetrate the walls around him. 

She reached out and touched his arm. "Oh, god! I'm so sorry Alec. I didn't mean that" She shook him a little, trying to get him back. "I'm a bitch. Tell me that! Please, just yell at me." 

They stood there, Alec looking vacantly into space, Max anxiously at his face, her hand still on him. 

Her eyes teared up. She searched for the right words to say to him. Words that would express how she felt, how sorry she was, but couldn't come up with anything. What could she say to him? 

It seemed every time she opened her mouth she hurt him. 

---------------- 

An old man looked around the room out of wise eyes that seemed to take it all in. It was filled with eighteenth and early nineteenth century jewelry and costumes. Everything was perfectly displayed for effect, creating a luxurious atmosphere. 

Well, almost everything. 

In the middle of the room there was an empty glass case. 

"I tell you it is impossible, yes?" a gray-haired man was saying with a heavy russian accent to what appeared to be a police detective "There is the motion detectors, the guards, the weight detector, sound detector, lasers. It had to be inside job. No human being on the planet could get in and steal that unnoticed!" 

Both the policeman and the Russian turned to look at the old man that appeared to be snickering at them, but dismissed him quickly. 

Who cared about an old fool with a cane anyway? 

------------- 

After what seemed like an eternity Alec forced his mind to take in his surroundings. He recognized Max in front of him. She was crying. He then felt his arm in her hands. She was touching him. 

There had to be something good about him. Max was the 'always do the right thing' kind of person, and she was still here, despite of what she had said. 

And he _had changed. He worried about other people now. And he loved that baby. Maybe he wasn't perfect, hell, he was far from perfect, but his child would be loved and cherished and looked after. _

He felt something warm sweep through him. And it was HIS kid. No matter what he'd been in the past, no one was going to change that. 

His eyes started to focus again. 

--------- 

"You are a bitch Max." he said very softly. "You're just lucky I have a thing for bitchy women." 

Max started laughing while tears still ran down her face. Relief surged through her, leaving her weak. 

Her sobs slowed as she looked into his eyes. "I really am sorry, Alec. You know I didn't mean that, don't you?" 

He sighed. "Yes Max, I know" 

Max groaned. She'd done it again. She had just made the whole situation all about herself. _She was sorry. __She hadn't meant it. He had to understand __her. _

She tried again, "Are you all right?" 

"I'm always all right." 

She winced. Okay, she deserved that. She decided to give it another try. 

"Thanks for telling OC, she had to know but... I was not looking forward to it." He nodded, his eyes a little warmer at the mention of the other woman's name. "You knew that! Didn't you?" Max gasped. "You told her so it would be easier for me." When he didn't answer her eyes teared up again. "Why?" 

He tore his gaze from the wall behind her and looked at her. "Why?" 

"Yes, why are you doing this?" 

"I want that baby too." 

A shiver of pleasure went down her spine at his words, but she continued anyway. "That's not what I meant. Why are you so nice to me? Why do you go out of your way to make things easier for me? Why are you always around, always there for me? Why do you put up with me?" She looked down at her feet. "I'm never nice to you, and I'm always yelling at you, and blaming you for everything…" She glanced up at his eyes again, searching for an answer. 

And that was the exact moment Sketchy chose to come out of Jam Pony. "Max, Alec, you still here? Normal's gonna be climbing the walls if he sees you!" Both transgenics turned to look at him, startled. "Come on Max, I'm heading for sector three too." Sketchy added. 

"Uhm yeah, I … " She looked back at Alec, but he already had his sunglasses on and was arranging the strap of his bag across his torso. 

"I'm leaving too, see you guys later." he said, pedaling his way down the alley. 

--------------- 

"So Max, please don't yell at me or punch me, but, is something going on with you and Alec?" 

They were riding in a quiet street, trying to avoid the holes in the pavement. 

"What makes you think that?" 

"Well, it's just that I haven't seen Logan around much lately. And I haven't seen Alec with other girls for a while now. And you two seem to disappear at the same time often…" He looked at her. "I'm a journalist. I pick these things up." he said, making big movements with his head to emphasize his words. 

A sad smile played on Max's lips. "I guess you do, Sketch. At least for the part that concerns Logan. You are right. We are not together anymore, not that we ever really were… I guess whatever we thought we had just wasn't there." She had started saying it so that the transition to her and Alec having a baby wouldn't be so surprising to Sketchy in the future, but as she did, she realized it was all true. She didn't know how or when, but somehow, at some point, Logan had lost his place as the center of her world. 

Sketchy nodded, smiled and turned his eyes to the road again. Max sighed and looked at him strangely, wondering why she was telling _him all this. Sometimes she tended to dismiss him as just a harmless fool. But she had done the same thing with Alec ever since they met. And if there was anything Alec was, he was definitely not a fool. Maybe she should start paying a little more attention to Sketchy. _

----------------- 

Alec nodded distractedly at the middle-aged woman signing his clipboard. He thanked her and walked away without waiting for his tip. 

Max's words were still dancing around his head. _Why? _

Why was he still around? Why hadn't he left Seattle? Why had he given her that necklace? Why had he felt so devastated to know she'd been with someone else? 

*Why do you think, Alec? You're in love with her.* 

He was in love with Max. That was why. Of all the women in the city, of all the X5s Maticore ever created, he had to fall in love with the most complicated, difficult female of all. 

He loved her. 

That was why he was there for her, why he took her abuse, why he tried to make things easier for her. He took care of Max because he loved her. 

And that was what he would do for his child. Take care of it. Because he loved him or her. 

All of a sudden there was a smile on Alec's lips. 

----------------- 

"Welcome to Salem." the sign read. 

The dark haired young man driving an old classic car glanced at it out of the corner of his eyes. 

*Salem, Salem, why does it ring a bell?* he frowned a little, trying to remember, welcoming the detour from his previous train of thought. 

*The exhibition!* Of course. He'd read about it somewhere. It was supposed to start a couple of weeks ago… 

He decided to check it out. Maybe he would get lucky and it would still be around. 

He laughed bitterly at himself. Since when did Lady Fortune accompany him? 

*Well, I don't think anyone can get any more unfortunate than me, can they?* Plus he could really use the money. 

And the distraction. Don't forget the distraction. 

The last thing he needed was time to think. 


	4. Revelations

Disclaimer: I don't own any of them blah, blah, blah 

A/N: A very special thanks to Infie who is the greatest and checked this out for me and made wonderful suggestions J. And I want to thank everyone who reviewed, it means a lot to me. Really. 

**Tough Call **

**Revelations **

"Josh!" Max entered the house balancing numerous bags in her arms and kicked the door shut. 

Her conversation with Sketchy earlier had reminded her she tended to neglect her friends sometimes, which had in turn reminded her of Joshua. She hadn't been to see him in almost two weeks! The poor guy was probably starving to death. At least till Alec had come back. So she decided to go shopping for him. 

"Josh!" She dumped the bags on the kitchen table and ran towards the basement as she heard him coming up the stairs. She smiled as she watched his big head emerge, tilted to one side, his nose up in the air. "What's up, Big Fella?" 

"Max," he said looking at her. "Breeding." 

She opened her mouth but then closed it again. Well, she hadn't planned on telling him so soon, but… "Yes, Joshua. I am." 

"Max and Alec having a little X5?" 

She gasped and then smiled, well, that was one less person to worry about. "Yes, we are, Josh." She wondered why he had immediately associated the baby with Alec, but decided since they were his only family it was natural for him to do so. 

The transgenic grinned and said, moving his head up and down "Max and Alec got busy!" 

Her smile faltered. How was she to explain this to him? "Er.. No, Josh. We didn't. But Alec is going to look after this baby when the time comes." 

The dog-faced guy scratched his head and after a while raised his eyes to meet hers, smiling. "Just like Father Sandeman took care of Joshua?" 

"Yes. Except Alec will not go anywhere." They both turned at the sound of the voice to look at the smiling man leaning against the doorframe. 

Max searched his eyes uncertainly, but the smile was genuine. There was no trace of the Alec she had glimpsed that morning. She didn't know what had changed in the hours since, but she was glad to see him back. That bleak , absent Alec had made her heart ache. 

She smiled tentatively as she watched Joshua lift Alec in a bear hug. Or dog hug rather. 

"Uhm… Josh … uhm… I'm really … glad you're… happy, but… I can't…breathe," he said, gasping for air. But he was grinning as he was set back on the ground. 

Max was so enthralled watching him she didn't even see Joshua approach her until she was lifted and swirled around herself. "No, Josh, wait!" She screamed, but she was giggling. 

Alec watched them, smiling. Leave it to Josh to always see the important part of everything. 

And he was right. They were having a baby. Good reason to celebrate. His smile became a grin, it _was a reason to celebrate. _

"So, Josh, are you making us Mac and cheese or what?" he asked. 

---------------- 

Biggs looked at his reflection in a glass case as he passed. *Ugh!* Well, it wasn't _that bad. It was just so… not him. He sighed. That was the point, right? _

He was wearing a gray suit he had lifted from a shop before checking in at the motel. White shirt, even a tie! His hair was slicked back and he was wearing glasses. He looked very much like any other businessman. Exactly what he had been aiming for. 

He made a big deal out of dropping the papers he was carrying, and then crouched behind a display to pick them up. He didn't think the guards were paying attention, but he played it safe anyway. It was the way he had been trained. 

From his advantaged position he checked the angles of the cameras and the lasers. He raised an eyebrow, impressed. It wouldn't be easy. This place screamed two men job. He and 494 would have had no trouble relieving the museum of its valuable cargo. 

He closed his eyes and dropped his head. Damn! Why did he have to bring Alec to the front of his mind again? *Cause he was your partner in crime and the two of you always worked great together.* 

He shook the thoughts away and was about to stand back up when he realized there were two men standing on the other side of the display he was using for cover. He eyed them, instinctively wary. 

One of them was very big and bulky. He had a cast on his right shoulder and was favoring his right leg. 

The other was shorter and blond. He was wearing a dark suit and a raincoat over it. Biggs' instincts immediately told him this one was the one he should be looking out for. 

'Suit' was speaking in a cold, raspy voice, whispering almost. The planes of his face were very sharp and changed as he spoke. "Tell me again how one filthy transgenic outmaneuvered _three exemplars of the purest blood on the planet?" _

Biggs held his breath and remained motionless. *_Transgenic?* All his senses focused on the men that had just in a heartbeat become his enemies. _

---------------- 

As they finished dinner, Joshua rose and proclaimed he had some painting to do, and with that left Max and Alec alone. 

An awkward silence followed his departure. Both transgenics sat there, looking at their empty plates, neither of them knowing quite what to say. 

*This is getting ridiculous* Alec shook his head, got up and announced, "I need a drink." 

Max watched him walk to the refrigerator. He found a can of soda and tossed it over his shoulder without glancing back. Max caught it, as it fell directly to where her hand was resting on the table. He grabbed one for himself, sprawled on the chair opposite hers and opened his beverage, making a funny face as he started drinking. 

Max smiled at him. "You do know there's liquor in that cabinet over there, don't you?" 

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I just…" he shrugged. "Well, you can't drink now." 

"Doesn't mean you can't." 

"Yeah, well, it's okay," he said, shrugging again. 

Max leaned against the back of the chair, studying him. She would never completely understand him. Their conversation that morning had reminded her she didn't really know him. And suddenly, getting to know Alec was the most important thing in the world for her. 

She bit her lower lip. How could she ask him, without drawing him back to that place he'd been at that morning? 

"Alec, what happened in Salem?" He remained quiet for a while and she silently cursed herself. *Really smooth, Max.* She had asked him about the heist, cause it had seemed neutral enough, guess she had been wrong, as usual. "It's okay, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. I was just curious and… But it's okay really." she assured him hastily. 

Alec looked at her worried eyes and sighed. He didn't really want to talk, but he could tell her about Salem, right? He wasn't emotionally involved with that and besides… 

"Actually I do have to tell you. You probably need to know this." 

He rolled his shoulders and started speaking. "I spent the first day doing recon of the building, figured I'd check it out before the exposition arrived. Nothing much to it. I had the blueprints before I left so I knew what I was up against. Usual stuff. Cameras, motion detectors –of course, ground level." He snickered at that and watched Max do a similar gesture. 

"Ordinaries," they both said in unison and smiled. 

He continued. "They also had lasers, pretty intricate disposition, but not a big deal if you can see them." He winked at her. "And of course, the guards. Regular rounds, blah, blah, blah." He made a dismissive movement with his hand. 

Max leaned forward, elbows on the table, chin in her hands, smiling slightly. Enjoying the sound of his voice, without realizing it. 

Alec also leaned forward, really getting into the story now and enjoying having Max's attention. "So there I am the next day, all ready to go check the exposition. See if anything had changed, you know, extra security or something once the goods had arrived. I go to the blasted museum, only to find out the blizzard had delayed the exhibition. I'm telling ya, I was _not thrilled. Plus, the darn blizzard made it practically impossible to leave the motel. Of course, I went to the museum again and again. Yeah, I know what you're thinking: useless. But even I can't watch that much TV," he said, shaking his head. _

Max nodded expectantly and then stopped herself as she became aware of it. He was _really good at this. No wonder Sketchy and the others were always hanging onto every story he told. _

It wasn't just the words or the inflection he gave them. 

He would raise an eyebrow or both of them, turn the corners of his mouth up or down, depending on what he was saying, roll his eyes, wriggle his nose, tilt his head… Not to mention his hands and shoulders. He moved them around all the time. 

"And so I became friends with one of the employees of the place." -_Half smile -"What? It was a __guy, Max," -__disappointed face- "But anyway, it was the easiest thing. One of the times we were chatting, I just overrode the weight sensor, they never even noticed. Soo lame!" -__shake of the head- "And to think I had this whole plan worked out." –__pout- "So, the night the exposition finally arrives, I go there and naturally, I check the perimeter first," –__roll of eyes- "And there I see this new guy outside." –__frown- "He's all big and moves all… professional, you know?" -__lips pursed- "Okay, so I go around him and check out this van in the parking lot. Antennas on the roof? Bad thing." -__raised eyebrows, nod- "So, I stay out there watching these guys all night, I learn their patterns and figure out a way around them. No big deal. They were good, but not that good, know what I mean?" -__cocky smile. _

*All right, Max, stop it!* She got up and started washing the dishes in order to stop watching his every gesture. "Go on," she encouraged him. 

"Well, the next night I go in. Smooth as silk. Not one single glitch. Trust me, I know what I'm talking about, I had every camera angle covered. They never saw me." 

--------------- 

'Bulky' swallowed uneasily and began talking. "We never saw him, Sir. George was outside. Carson and me had the cameras covered. But he somehow managed to slip past us." 

Biggs almost felt sympathy for the guy. He definitely wouldn't want to be telling 'Suit' he had screwed up. No, Sir. Well, almost. A half smile came to his lips. 

"We only realized the piece was gone when one of the cameras swept by. Couldn't be more than 5.6 seconds. So George, outside, changed direction and picked his smell and we were already on our way. When we spotted him he was running through a dark alley. He was really fast, Sir, but we managed to keep up with him." 'Bulky stopped and started fidgeting with his cast. "He ambushed us, Sir." 

'Suit' just raised a menacing eyebrow. 

"He, er... got inside this warehouse and when he came in he hit us with some sort of heavy bar. George's gun fell and the guy grabbed it. He shot George and Carson. Two bullets each, one between the eyes, the other through the heart." 

---------------- 

"Third guy had fallen behind this crate, I couldn't shoot him directly. When I went around it he jumped at me. I swear to you I don't know where he came from. And he tackled me good. Knocked the gun from my hand." Max watched him shake his head disbelievingly. The dishes were long forgotten. 

"We started circling each other and then began to fight..." 

---------------- 

"He had some pretty good moves, Sir, for a non-Familiar." 

*Familiar? What the hell is that supposed to mean?* Biggs thought, disconcerted, but he continued to listen, filing the entire conversation for future examination. 

"He fought hard. He started with some back kicks, nothing fancy, but effective, then he..-" 

"Spare me the dance lesson." 'Suit' interrupted him. "Bottom line, he beat the crap out of you." 

Bulky cleared his throat "Well, er.. Not exactly, Sir." 

"Oh?" Suit asked, his voice full of sarcasm, as he looked at Bulky's cast. 

---------------- 

"...The guy was a beast. I kept hitting him and he acted like it was nothing. He had me cornered. He even broke one of my ribs." He rubbed the place absently and Max felt color come into her cheeks. Wasn't that where she had hit him yesterday? 

"Sorry," she murmured. 

"Huh? Oh, that's okay. So I... I pretended to trip over a box. I know, cheap, but hey, it worked. I was on the floor, and when he came closer I kicked his feet from under him and rolled to grab the gun. The guy moved fast. When I managed to shoot, he'd already moved. I only hit his arm and his leg. I ran out of bullets but he was down, so I just got the hell out of there. I could hear sirens coming, probably the guards at the museum having realized the piece was gone. I thought it best to disappear." 

Max looked at him wide eyed. "Familiars?" She whispered, and then raised her voice. "You went up against three Familiars on your own?!? Have you gone mad or are you just plain stupid? Don't EVER do that again!" 

"Well, it's not like I had much of a choice… They would have caught up with me sooner or later. This way at least..-" 

"…you were making the first move and had the element of surprise on your side." she finished, taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry about before, my big mouth keeps saying things on its own." 

He smiled at her, propped against the counter as he was balancing in the back legs of his chair. 

God, she loved his smile. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She didn't understand what it was that caused these weird reactions lately. Maybe it was the pregnancy. She'd heard it sometimes made women a little irrational. 

She was so beautiful. He never got tired of looking at her. 

They still had a lot of unsolved issues, but they were making progress, right? At least they had talked in a civilized manner for more than five minutes. Well, he had talked, but she had _listened. That was a first. And speaking of firsts, Max had not even punched him once! She hadn't even raised her voice! Okay, except for that little outburst at the end, but he had realized right away she'd been scared. And she had apologized immediately afterwards. His smile broadened and he bit his lower lip, the mischievous glint back in his eyes. He just couldn't resist. _

"Do you realize that's like the second time you've apologized during the course of this conversation? That's got to be more than you have ever since we met!" He tilted his head. "Are you going all girly on me Maxie?" 

The next thing he knew he was lying with his back on the floor and Max was standing in front of him, hands on hips, smiling. 

He winced and then laughed. *Note to self: no rocking on chairs when Max is around.* 

------------- 

Suit's face was tight, except for a twitching muscle in his jaw. "And you're absolutely certain this was him?" He produced a picture from one of the pockets of his raincoat. 

Biggs strained to see it, but the angle was all wrong. 

"Yessir, that's him." 

"Persistent little tooth ache." He took out his cell phone "Otto?, White. Keep harassing every single dealer in Washington, Oregon and Idaho. I want people around every corner and hole… I don't care they've been there for two days already. When 494 goes to sell that thing, I want him. 452 won't be far behind... Are you still there? Told you to get your ass moving! As in NOW!" He closed the connection. 

He turned to Bulky with a feral smile. "Report to base, soldier. You will be compensated for your wonderful performance." With that he turned and left. 

Biggs waited till Bulky walked away to finally stand up, shaking his head, a frown of concentration creasing his forehead as he tried to classify all the information he had just received. 

Okay, so Alec had robbed the museum, that didn't come as a big surprise. He should have realized it the minute the guy had said they hadn't even known he was there. All X5s were very good at burglary, but 494 had always been the best. 

But who the hell were these people, they had '_picked up his smell'?!? What the fuck was that all about? _

The White guy was obviously government, but the other? "Familiars"? He shook his head, too much here that didn't make any sense. 

The most important part of it all jumped to his mind. They were onto Alec. They had a picture of him. He needed to be warned ASAP. But how? 

Biggs had promised to stay out of Alec's life. He couldn't break his promise. Especially after what he'd done. But how else was he supposed to…? 

*Wait. I promised he'd never _see me again, right?* He took a deep breath, he felt relieved he'd found a way around it, but that still didn't make it any easier. The image of his friend lying on the floor against a dumpster flashed through his mind. "Damn it!" He took out his cell phone before he could lose his resolve and started walking out of the room as he dialed. _

---------------- 

The old man sitting in a bench in one corner of the room, apparently snoozing, smiled. 

Neither the men busily discussing nor the young man spying on them had even realized he was there. 

Oh, the boy had seen him, but he had dismissed him. The kid had been trained to recognize threat, and his instincts had probably told him this old guy presented none. Poor kid would have been really disappointed had he realized he'd been 'made' as soon as he had entered the room. 

But the kid's instincts had been right. At least for now, he offered no threat. 

He was disappointed by the other two, though. Specifically by the blond one. Well, he had let him down for most of his adult life. 

He frowned a little, but then smiled again. 

It had been a fruitful evening. He now had a face and a name to go with his previous information. Plus the bit about 452. Interesting. 

A very rewarding day indeed. 

------------- 


	5. Closeness

A/N: once again, I have to thank Infie, for going through this, even with all the work she has. You are the best, Infie! And of course, to all of you who reviewed, thank you all SO much. 

**Tough Call **

**Closeness? **

Alec's cell phone began to ring. He sprinted to the couch to get his jacket and retrieved the device from one of the pockets. "Yeah…" he drawled. He smiled as he heard the voice on the other end. "Hey Cindy! … Yep, she's here … How she's looking? Brunette, a little skinny, brown eyes …" He laughed. " … that is just very **un**ladylike OC … ok, ok, hold on … yeah, see you tomorrow." He handed Max the phone. 

"Yo! Wassup girl?" Alec winced and then smiled, bemused. He really had to teach his girl some adequate speaking skills. 

His girl. He sighed. He really liked the sound of that. Yeah, and Max would probably kill him if she knew what he was thinking. He sat down and watched her. 

"Oh, come on!" Biggs exclaimed in frustration at the phone he held, then stuffed it back in his pocket. He kicked a trash can as he passed. It wasn't fair! He had been prepared to talk to Alec, which hadn't been easy. He took a deep breath. He'd have to try again later. 

He went to his motel room, and efficiently packed up the few belongings he had with him. No point staying in Salem. Even if those Familiars weren't around anymore, Alec had been here. Whatever valuables the exhibition had had in the past, they were gone now. 

As he headed towards his car, a small duffel bag over his shoulder, he took his cell phone back out and glared at it for a long moment He took a deep breath and started to dial. 

Max tossed and turned, wide awake. 

Thinking about Alec. 

She still didn't really know anything about him and yet, while sometimes she felt he was a complete stranger, other times she felt she'd known him her entire life. 

Max snuggled deeper into the bed. _His bed._

Every time she moved, his smell came up from the sheets. It was intoxicating. 

She buried her face in the pillow. What the hell was wrong with her? This was Alec! 

Wonderful, mysterious Alec. 

Alec changed his position on the couch once more. Damn, this was uncomfortable! 

Especially knowing she was lying on his bed, just a door away. _His bed_. 

He sighed. 

_Max hung up the phone and turned to face him. "Is it okay if I crash on the couch? OC has a girl over and..." she said, rolling her eyes._

_"No, it's not." Alec said seriously. When she looked at him in surprise, he smiled. "You take my bed, I'll take the couch" _

_"No, Alec, it's okay, really." _

_"Oh, but I insist!" he replied gallantly._

Yeah, very gentlemanly. Except the thought of her sleeping on _his bed was killing him now! _

He flipped on the TV. He just knew he wasn't going to get any sleep. 

Biggs was frowning. He eyed the road ahead of him, but his thoughts were completely elsewhere. 

_'This number has been disconnected.' _ He'd heard it more than ten times in the course of two hours. He still couldn't believe it. The first couple of times he had ruled it out as some sort of crossed-signals communications error. But after ten times he had given up. 

So he was now on his way back to Seattle, after turning his car around when he'd been 50 miles south of Salem! He'd considered other options, like sending Alec a message, a letter even. But he had discarded them all. As much as he dreaded the idea, he had to go warn his friend. He owed Alec that much. 

Once again he was overwhelmed by guilt. It just wouldn't go away. It pressed against his ribs, it choked him, it clouded his vision. Telling himself he couldn't have prevented it, he couldn't have known, didn't help at all. 

He shook his head and forced his eyes to focus on the road. A shining spot some eight miles ahead caught his eye, and he concentrated his eyesight on it. It was a person. A girl. She was walking by the route. 

The moonlight was reflecting on her blond hair, which was what had caught Biggs' attention in the first place. Her march was very determined. As the car closed the distance, she turned around to face the oncoming noise. Biggs noticed she was beautiful. She had a remarkable face. And she was fit, although a little thin. She actually looked like a young, soon to be model. He made himself look away, remembering what trouble the last female in his life had instigated. Just because this girl was perfect, didn't mean he had to..- He stepped on the brakes abruptly, screeching to a halt. Perfect was right. _Too damn perfect. He watched her walk towards the car in the rearview mirror. He smiled to himself; if he hadn't realized it before, that stride would have been a glaring tip-off. She moved briskly, with natural ease, but her shoulders were tense and her hands were comfortably loose at her sides. He could see her fingers twitch, and her eyes were now focused on him, after having checked the surrounding area. _

He left his hands on the wheel, where she could see them and slowly turned around, nodding at her. "At ease, soldier." He watched her blink warily, a shred of confusion briefly shining in her eyes. "It's okay. X5-511," he added and she relaxed a little. "You can call me Biggs." 

She smiled tentatively. "I'm Ralph," she said. 

"Ralph? Isn't that like a guy's name?" 

She raised her chin defiantly. "I like it." 

Biggs smiled now. "Hop in, Ralph. Seems we're headed the same way." 

Max got up from bed and put her sweater back on. She had slept for around two hours, but she just wasn't sleepy anymore. 

She could hear the TV in the other room and walked that way, silently opening the door in case Alec had fallen asleep. She shouldn't have worried, though. He instantly looked in her direction. She watched him shift into a sitting position and pat the cushion beside him. 

"Wanna watch a cowboy movie _and_ a sci-fi movie plus a couple of music vids?" he asked smiling. 

"That bad, huh?" 

"Yep."

"Then no, thanks." She stood by the couch, looking at the screen. "Couldn't sleep?"

He shrugged. 

"Want some milk?" she jested. He only smiled briefly. He seemed to be in a very dark mood. She hated to see him like that. She searched for something to bring him out of it. "Hey, Alec! What do you say we go rob a bank?" 

That got his attention. 

"Rob a bank?" he looked perplexed. 

"Yeah, you know. We sneak into the bank and we grab a couple of bags of money, stored jewelry, some gold ingots, we sneak out …" she trailed off, smiling. 

"Max?" he looked at her strangely. 

"Well, all right, but don't say I'm the spoilsport later!" 

He smiled a little longer this time and she dropped down onto the couch beside him. She swung her legs over the arm of the couch, and lay her head very close to his leg. She looked up at him, smiling. 

Alec looked down at her smiling face and his insides churned. She looked so enticing, lying there, so close to him. He actually had to think to stop his hand from going to stroke her hair. He made a fist and looked away, trying to concentrate on the TV, not very successfully. 

If he had thought he was uncomfortable before, he'd been sadly mistaken. He considered getting up and moving away to buy himself some breathing room, but thought better of it. He'd have to get used to being around Max like this. He could do it. 

She snuggled closer to him and sighed. "Alec…" 

"Yeah?" what was wrong with his voice? All of a sudden it was all husky. He cleared his throat. 

"How did you choose your last name?" 

She managed to surprise him; he had certainly not expected that. He spoke, without tearing his eyes from the TV. "I was signing up to work at Jam Pony, and I realized I needed a last name. I had no idea what to use. But I'd just watched an old movie, and the actor's name was McDowell, so… It was the first thing that came to my mind. Don't even know if it was spelled the same way." He shrugged. "But I liked the way it sounded." 

"Alec McDowell. Yep, has a certain… ring to it." She nodded. 

"Why?" 

"Nothing. Just curious." 

For a while, only the sound of soundtrack music could be heard. Then Max asked again. "Alec?" 

"Yeah?" 

"Why do you like watching TV so much?" 

He blinked again, but answered readily enough. "I don't know. At first it was the best way to learn about the outside world. It was fast and expedient. And it was convenient for making conversation. You know, knowing the latest shows, the cool music…" he shrugged. "Then I started to really enjoy what I was seeing. I like watching the news, to know what's going on. And it's also nice to get lost in there, in somebody else's story. Normal people's stories. It's distracting, stops me from thinking." He finished, raising one shoulder. Why was he telling her all this? 

After considering his words for a moment, Max started talking. "I can understand that. I used to try to blend in all the time. I'd watch a family through a window and try to picture myself in the midst of them." She paused. "I guess I still do. Try to fit in the _normal_ world, that is." She laughed at herself ironically. "These last few months have proven that to be quite a difficult task. Must be part of the reason I always treated you the way I did. You were the constant reminder that I could never really get away from Manticore." She watched his eyes turn darker, and hastily added, "It was my mistake. Not your fault. Now I know I can't fit. And frankly, I don't think I want to anymore." She finished with a smile, and fell into silence once again. 

They stayed that way for a long time, each of them deep in their own thoughts. 

Max finally spoke again. "Alec?" 

"Yeah?" 

"What do you think the baby will be like?" 

He hesitated. "Well, beautiful. All babies are beautiful, right?" 

"Yeah, ok," she answered. 

He glanced briefly at her, before turning off the TV and resting his head on the couch, running his hand through his hair. He made an effort to start talking again. It was painful, but she needed his reassurance. He could see her fear, her insecurity. 

Of course, the first thing that came to his mind was 'dark haired', but he couldn't say that, could he? "Max, the baby will be perfect. How could it not be, with a mother that looks like you?" Where did that come from? It was certainly not what he had planned to say, either. He swallowed. 

Max raised her head to lock her eyes with his now dark green ones. She could see some emotion simmering in their depths, yet she couldn't place it. But there was no mistaking the _other_ light shining in them. 

She hesitated but spoke anyway. "You, er… you think I look 'perfect'?" Apparently huskiness was going around. And did she have to be so pathetic? She wanted to bang her head on the floor, only, she couldn't tear her eyes from him long enough to make any movement. 

He looked at her face, so tantalizing, looking up at him. He watched her tongue moisten those full lips. He was hypnotized. Something in the back of his mind was yelling at him, but for the life of him, he couldn't understand what it was saying. He just had to inch closer to her. Just a little bit. Only a little bit more. 

When his lips made contact with hers, the world around them disappeared. Time seemed to stretch as Alec's lips moved slowly over hers. 

She closed her eyes and placed a shaky hand on his legs, propping herself on her elbows so she could be closer to him. She felt his hand against the back of her head, drawing her to him. 

As he invaded her mouth, she felt her arms weaken and abandon her. But instead of falling, she was hauled up. Alec's arm was around her and he lifted her into his lap, his lips never leaving hers. 

She pressed herself into him, one hand entangled in the hair at his neck, the other one moving from his chest to his shoulders, testing their strength. 

Alec deepened the kiss even more, if possible. He was gentle; he was thorough. And she was lost. 

"Alec…" She whispered into his mouth. Desire had taken her, and it was beyond her control now. 

The very first lights of dawn could be seen in the distance, making the landscape look even gloomier. The frost sparkled on the trees as the fog was beginning to lift. 

He looked at the girl sleeping in the passenger seat and sighed. 

When he'd asked her where she was going, she'd simply said Seattle. He'd asked her why, but her only response had been a shrug of her shoulders. He had assumed she'd heard about the transgenics gathering in an abandoned area of the city and asked her as much. A flicker of pain had passed through her beautiful eyes and he had dropped the subject, offering her instead the remaining of his dinner: a bag of potato chips which had probably never even seen a potato in a photograph and a half a bar of chocolate. Ralph had devoured them in an instant, licking her fingers afterward. She was far too thin, as if she hadn't eaten well in a long time. So he had stopped at a Diner to buy her three burgers and two milkshakes, plus a bag of assorted candies. 

Biggs sighed again. He used to be darn good at gathering information. He hadn't been on too many missions, but he'd never failed. So how come a pair of pretty, sad eyes got the best of him? He was riding a car with a girl next to him and all the information he had obtained from her was a name. *Way to go, soldier! Is this how they trained you?* His CO would have been very disappointed in him. 

She was intoxicating. He was drowning in sensations. She was everything he'd dreamed she'd be, only better. 

"Alec…" a long, shaky whisper. 

How long had he waited to hear her say his name like that? How long had he longed to kiss her, caress her, have her wrapped around him? It seemed like forever. 

He couldn't believe Max was kissing him, Alec. 

Was she? 

Max was suddenly pushed away and thrust back on the couch. She watched in confusion as Alec stood up and ran a hand through his hair. He was breathing hard and looking everywhere but at her. 

She felt lost and reached a hand to touch him. He backed away raising his hands. "Please, don't." 

"A-.. Alec?" 

He closed his eyes for a second, and when he opened them, there was no trace of his previous torment. 

"M-..Max?" he said, imitating her question. The usual smirk reappeared on his face. "Can't get enough of me, huh?" 

Max gaped at him open mouthed. Then she stood up and marched to his room. 

He winced. *Damn!* He extended his arm to catch her arm as she passed by. Max struggled to release it, but he was prepared for it and held on. 

"Max… Max! Look at me!" When she refused, he used his other hand to turn her face to him. 

Furious dark eyes looked back at him. But he could also see the hurt in them. 

"I'm sorry about that, Max. I guess my mouth is having the same problems yours did tonight." Great, now he was lying to her again. He had known exactly what he was saying. He had been frustrated and had meant to hurt her. He shook the thought off. "I'm sorry." That, at least, was true. 

She raised her shoulders and tried to get away once more, but he didn't let her. 

"Truth is, Max, _I'm_ the one who can't get enough of you," he said simply. 

Max stopped tugging and just looked at him, uncertainty shining in her eyes. 

"Right now, I want you so much it hurts," he continued. "But things are complicated enough as they are. We can't just, you know, sleep together, just for the hell of it." At her raised eyebrow, he added, "I know. It's me. But, we're going to be around each other a lot now." He looked at her seriously. "I can't take that chance. Not now." He ran a finger down her face, tracing her features, until it rested on her lips. "Not with you." 

She swallowed hard and nodded. After a minute of standing there, they broke out of the trance, and Alec moved to let her pass. 

"Max," he said as she was walking through the bedroom door. "Good night." 

She gave him her most undecipherable look and said, "Good night, Alec." 

He released a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. He sank onto the sofa, head in his hands. 

*Great, Alec, just great.* He'd pulled off the noble, perfect gentleman just fine. He was so pitiful. He'd spent months just trying to get her attention. Sure, he'd found other entertainments, he hadn't been prepared to stay celibate for a girl, no matter how hot she was. Especially when she'd been sort of going out with someone else. 

And now, when that particular woman had been willing – which she definitely had been – he… 

"Alec?" his head came up swiftly, hadn't she closed the door already? "We'll take it slow." And with that, she eased it closed. 

After a few seconds of shock, a lazy smile made its way to Alec's face. Okay, maybe they _would_ work it out. 

Max closed the door and leaned against it, smiling. 

Okay, so maybe he wasn't as tough as he'd have her, and everyone else, believe. 

He hadn't said much tonight, but the few things he had, made her feel less unsure about herself. He was troubled, he was scared sometimes too. Maybe he hadn't craved a normal life as badly as she had, he knew he wasn't going to get it, and accepted it. But he used the tube as an escape. She still didn't know what exactly he was escaping from, but she guessed it had to do with Manticore, and the things they'd done to him or made him do. 

And that kiss! It had been the most amazing experience in her whole life. She was still shaking from it. 

She'd felt completely outraged, and hurt, when he made that stupid comment afterward. But then he'd been so sweet. She couldn't believe it. The way he'd talked about her. Like she was something special. Something to be treasured. 

And then watching him sit there, so… forlorn. She'd felt utterly weak. 

He was so complex. The nice, sweet guy he was beginning to let her see, but also the ruthless soldier she had only glimpsed a few times, the lost little boy, the smart aleck she'd first known… All put together, it made up the astounding man that was Alec. She couldn't believe she ever thought she knew him. She was beginning to think she'd never know him, not really. 

But she would give it a try. 

This baby had given her the chance to assert her feelings, and an opportunity to be around Alec. She was not going to waste it. She wasn't sure what she felt for him yet, but she was going to find out. 

She got in the bed and fell instantly asleep, the smile still lingering on her lips. 

Biggs made the turn to enter Seattle's first sector checkpoint and sighed. Seemed like he had been doing that a lot lately. 

So... wanna review?


	6. Confrontation

A/N: As usual Infie was my beta on this, and as usual she made it better and reminded me of things forgotten ;-). *hugs Infie. Thank you all for reviewing. 

A/N2: Next chapter might take a while, exams and all... Sorry. (that is, if anyone actually reads this here). 

**Tough Call **

**Confrontation **

Biggs pulled over in front of a small, ordinary looking house in a dark alley. It was still very early and the street was deserted, which suited his purposes. 

The girl beside him looked up at him questioningly. 

"Guy that lives here is a hacker." It was all the explanation he offered. He knew she'd assume –correctly- that he'd been in contact with some other transgenic in Seattle who had kept him up to date on important info like this. It was standard procedure. No point telling her he wasn't in _contact_ any more. 

They got out of the car and she stood on watch while he picked the lock. They entered silently and closed the door behind them. 

After going in opposite directions to make sure no one was around, they met in the living-room area again. Or at least what must have once been a living room. A big desk with state of the art computer equipment and several appliances were connected to the main computer by an intricate net of cables. Biggs sat at the desk and started moving his fingers competently over the keys. 

Ralph moved to the hall to watch out for any sign that their 'host' was waking up. 

When Max woke up again, she could smell the coffee's rich aroma coming from the kitchen. A girl could get used to waking up to enticing smells every morning. 

She sighed and went to take a shower. 

As she came out shortly afterward, she was wearing her pants and one of Alec's tee-shirts. It was, of course, too big for her, even though she had chosen one of those he had that showed his muscles. Just the thought of him wearing it made her blush. It made having him see her looking like she was wearing a tent almost bearable. 

Alec looked up as she entered the room and immediately said, with an exasperated tone, "Damn! Now I'm never going to be able to wear that again!"

"You won't?"

"Of course not! You think I'd ever wear something that looks better on _somebody else_? Hell, no!" 

He smiled and watched her smile back. "Want some coffee?" 

"Oh, yeah!" she perched herself on a stool, balancing her legs. "You're up early…" 

"So are you." 

"Yeah, well, I'm the one with shark DNA," she said superiorly. 

"Yeah, well, I'm the one sleeping on the couch," he countered, matching her tone. 

"Good point." She conceded. 

"Whoa, wait! Did you just agree that I won that little dispute?" he asked with a feigned look of shock on his face. While he was busy with his theatrics, she snatched a bag of chocolate chip cookies from in front of him, smirking and raising her eyebrows. 

"Sneaky!" he said. 

"I do my best." She was the one to feign modesty now, but without losing her tight grip on the bag. 

"Well, that's okay. You can have them… You should enjoy while you still can. I mean… in a few weeks you'll probably be unable to keep anything down in the mornings, so…" he ducked, laughing, to avoid the cookies flying towards his head. 

She glanced back at Biggs, but he was too busy looking at the several screens in front of him, his eyes moving rapidly to read everything. 

She hesitated, but only for an instant, before she grabbed the phone sitting on the small table in the hallway. It took less than five seconds. Just a whisper. 

White closed his phone with a feral smile, before tossing it on the passenger seat of his speeding car. Maybe _he_ wasn't the main target, but getting him would provide for a great deal of satisfaction. It wouldn't be long now. 

"So, where are we going so early?" 

"_We_ are going somewhere?" 

"Well, I thought you could give me a ride… After all, we do work at the same place…" he smiled sheepishly. 

"You just want an excuse to put your hands around me." Did she just say that out loud? 

Alec's smile broadened and his look became more predatory. "So?" 

She blushed slightly, but then returned the smile and added sweetly, looking at him from under batting eyelashes: "Okay, you can come with me. But we have to make a quick stop before work." 

"We do?" He looked at her doubtfully. She had agreed too easily. And that sweet tone? 

"Yep. Come on, let's go." 

_And she wasn't going to say anything else? *Not good.* he thought as he grabbed his own jacket and followed her out. _

Okay, whatever trouble was coming ahead, he had no complaints right now. He was sitting behind Max as they steered through the streets of Seattle, with his arms around her and his head resting on her shoulders. He could sense her squirming every time his breath tickled her neck, and he was loving it. He couldn't care less where they were going. 

Which was why he was startled when they stopped. And even more taken aback when he realized _where_ they'd stopped. He looked up and then back at Max, who was getting off the bike and tucking her glasses in her jacket pocket. 

"You coming?" She asked, raising an eyebrow daringly. 

"Er… Sure." He answered. What the hell were they doing here? Especially him. 

He eyed her the entire way up. She seemed completely oblivious to his discomfort. As a matter of fact, she seemed completely oblivious to everything. Her face was a mask. The one he hated so much, the one he had spent so much charm and wit and sarcasm trying to erase almost from the time they'd met. 

As she was about to open the door to the penthouse he said, "Max, are you sure you want me to go in there?" 

"You afraid?" 

"No. But I'm quite sure Logan doesn't want to see me. Hell, I know I wouldn't want to see me if I was him!" 

"What I have to say concerns you too. I want you to hear it. No more misunderstandings," she responded. 

He sighed. "Fine." 

As he came to stand beside her, she suddenly turned to look at him and grabbed his hand. She never dropped the mask, but she squeezed his hand hard, before releasing it and opening the door. 

When Logan looked up from his computer, what he saw was a very determined Max marching towards him, with Alec coming behind her at a slower pace and with a silly smile on his face. 

The smile immediately vanished, however, as Alec saw Logan's frowning face turned to him. *Great, you moron. Here's the guy who thinks you stole his girlfriend and you walk into his house smiling.* The memory of the kiss last night was doing nothing to make him feel better. He nodded in the older man's direction and dropped into a chair some distance away from Max and Logan. 

Max was playing nervously with the hem of her jacket. "I have something to tell you, Logan." Let no one say Max Guevara didn't know how to get straight to the point. 

"If it is about you and Alec, I don't want to hear it, Max." 

Alec moved in his chair, uncomfortable. "Look, Logan, I'm sorry, I ne..-" 

"I understand." Logan said, raising a hand to stop Alec. "Just don't expect me to congratulate you two or something." 

"No, you don't understand." Max interrupted. "That's what we're here for." She swallowed and then plunged right into it. Alec was fascinated by that resolute expression – he always had been, even when it had been a pain in the ass at times -, and so it took him a couple of seconds to understand what she was saying. But it made him feel all warm inside once he did. 

"That day you saw Alec leaving my place, he had just crashed there cause the cops were looking for him. Nothing happened. We were both going through a rough time, we shared some big issues the night before and we were enjoying the fact that the other one was there. What you saw was just a couple of friends." Logan looked skeptical, but also confused. "I'm sorry I misled you into believing it was something else. But you have to know Alec didn't do anything wrong. He was just being my friend and he didn't deserve to be dragged into our problems." She looked at Alec then. He smiled at her and nodded, 'apology accepted'. She smiled back slightly and he could see the weight being lifted off her shoulders. 

Logan was smiling now too. He was looking at her with what Alec assumed was a hot look, he couldn't be sure. 

"You wanted to protect me, to push me away, so you wouldn't accidentally kill me…" he said. 

"Huh? Oh, yes." She said, turning back to Logan, the smile now vanished. 

"Max, I'm willing to take that chance." 

"Well, I'm not, Logan." 

Alec sighed, his own smile gone. 

"It doesn't matter Max. I'm not going to let you do this to us again. You and I belong together." Logan said, standing to look down at Max. 

Alec had to fight back the urge to gag. He wanted to leave, but he also couldn't make himself. Not yet. Maybe it was the masochist part of him? The part that had kept him around Max? 

"No, Logan, we don't. I thought so in the past, but now I'm sure it was just an illusion. I… I don't love you. Not the way you want me to." 

*All right!* He was glad he'd stayed now. His heart was beating frantically, but he couldn't care less. 

"Shush Max. Stop that. Stop trying to protect me. I'm a grown man. I can make my own decisions." 

*Grown man. That he was.* Alec thought, trying to hide his grin. 

"I am an adult too, Logan. And I can also make my own decisions." She was starting to sound annoyed now. 

"That's enough, Max." 

"Stop patronizing me. I'm not a child, Logan." 

Oh, yeah, there was definitely anger boiling in there. 

"Max, I love you, there's nothing you can do or say to push me away now." 

"Oh, yeah? How about this: I'm pregnant!" 

*Whoa!* Alec was sure she hadn't planned on telling him that. At least not like _that._

Logan looked at her in disbelief, but after taking a close look at her serious, if slightly embarrassed face, his eyes opened wide in shock. 

"You're what?!?" 

Max sighed. "Pregnant, Logan. I'm going to have a baby." 

Alec almost felt sorry for the guy. 

"You… You… You can't be pregnant…" Logan was shaking his head, trying to clear it. 

"Well, I am." She said, in a much calmer tone. 

"You _bitch_!" 

Alec was on his feet before he realized it. Only Max moving to stand in his way made him aware of the fact that he had walked across the room. "Don't. You. Ever. Talk. To. Her. Like. That. Again." He hissed, his eyes shooting ice daggers at Logan. 

"What? What right do you have to say anything here? You slept with MY girlfriend. And to think I was willing to allow myself to respect you just a few moments ago! Get the hell out of my house!" 

"I don't care what you think of me. I don't care what you say about me. But if you EVER talk to Max, or about Max, like that again, I'm going to kill you." 

Logan was furious enough to overlook the threat in Alec's voice. "What you are going to defend her virtue now? She couldn't keep her legs crossed, could she?" 

Max's hands were on Alec's chest, pushing him backwards. He looked down at her and she shook her head. "Don't, please." She whispered. 

He took a deep breath, trying to calm down. 

"Look, Logan..-" She tried. 

"Shut up! I don't want to hear another word from you." 

"She was in Heat. Did that ever occur to you?" Alec shouted back at him. He was really trying to maintain his fraying hold on his temper. 

"Is that supposed to be an excuse?" 

"Christ! You think she likes being in Heat? You think she enjoys it? It's got to be one of the most humiliating experiences in the world! And you say you _love her_? You don't even know her." 

Max pushed him back again. "Alec," she whispered, "please leave us. I can take care of this. I need to." She gave him her warmest look and after long moment he reluctantly raised his hands in surrender. 

"I'll be downstairs." He said and turned to leave, but not before he shot Logan a warning look, making sure the other guy saw it this time. 

By the time he reached the lobby, he was smiling. 

He was still furious with Logan, but he knew Max could take care of it, and frankly, he didn't care what the guy thought, not any more. 

Max's words were still going through his head. He'd been able to hear some of what she was saying before the elevator doors closed. _"Logan, calm down. This has nothing to do with what I said earlier. You and I can't have any sort of relationship. And it's not because of the baby. I don't love you. Not anymore." _

Yep, he was grinning like an idiot now. 

As he stepped outside, he put his hands in his jacket pockets and looked around, breathing in the cold morning air. 

A movement to his right caught his eye. Three big guys were closing in on a blonde girl. She had her back turned to him, but he immediately recognized her ready-for-battle stance. He eased his way around a line of parked cars, so that he came at them from behind. The girl saw him way before the others. He saw her tense even more and then relax a little as a flash of recognition crossed her eyes. 

He nodded imperceptibly. Well, imperceptibly to human eyes, cause she acknowledged it with a blink. 

Alec spoke in a casual manner. "I'd leave her alone if I were you." 

The three guys turned to look at him, but all they saw was a young, average guy, standing there with arms crossed and legs braced slightly apart, balancing his weight from one foot to the other and smirking. 

Maybe it was too early and the light was still too diffuse for them to see the look in his eyes that belied the easiness of his pose. But it wasn't dark enough for her, and she saw it. As well as the sign his fingers were making, as he tapped them _casually_ over his elbow. 

"You hear that, Bernie? Pretty boy here thinks we should leave!" the guy closest to him said, turning to look at Bernie, to share the joke with him and his other pal. It was a big mistake. 

The last thing he felt was an iron fist connecting with his jaw before the world turned black around him. 

On cue, Ralph braced her hands on Bernie's shoulders and kicked him between his legs. Hard. But not as hard as she could have. She had understood the signal. She didn't particularly care for holding back in a fight, but she wouldn't question a direct order. 

The man Alec had hit hadn't even touched the ground when Alec lunged at the second man, using his weight to push him against the wall and away from the girl. Alec's knee sank into his stomach and he doubled over. Alec grabbed him by the hair, yanking his head up. A cracking noise was heard as the man's nose broke under Alec's next punch. 

He turned to face the remaining attacker, but Bernie was also bent down, both hands covering his groin. 

Bernie glanced at his partners, one out cold, the other trying to contain the bleeding of his nose. He looked up at the young man who moved to stand before the girl, arms up, ready for more. Even if what he'd just seen hadn't been enough, one look at that face told Bernie he really didn't want to mess with this guy. He was smirking slightly, but his eyes were cold. Ice cold. Bernie held up his hand. 

"All right, man. It's cool… We're leaving now, we didn't mean to upset your girl." He bent down to haul up his buddy who was still holding his nose, neither of them taking their eyes off Alec. 

Alec remembered to rub his hand, shaking it, as if it was hurting. Following his lead, Ralph threw her arms around him from behind, burying her face in his shirt and started to tremble, giving the impression she was sobbing. Alec lifted his arm, and pulling it around her shoulders, brought her to his front and caressed her hair soothingly. "Well done, kid." He whispered by her ear, while he watched the men drag away their friend, still looking at him. He rested his head on her shoulder, trying to hide his smile. 

Max came down the stairs. She wanted to get all of Logan's recriminations out of her head. He had refused to let her explain. At first she had wanted to make things easier for him, tried to understand how he would be feeling. But then she had stopped caring. 

She was even more angry with herself. For a moment there, she had started to feel guilty! If it hadn't been for Alec leaping to her defense, she would have been begging Logan to forgive her. _For her Heat!_ Old habits died hard. 

She stepped into the cold and glanced around, looking for Alec. He always managed to make her forget every bad thing that happened. 

And then she saw him. He was on the corner, hugging a girl. She saw him caress the blond hair. She was shocked. As she was about to move towards them, Alec bent his head, and buried it in the girl's hair. Hot anger flared through her. He had done the very same thing to her, less than an hour before! 

She hopped on her bike and turned it on, getting out of there in a whirl of noise. 

Alec turned around as he heard the engine and cursed, letting go of the girl. 

"Great, just great!" he murmured, and then turned to look at the big eyes staring at him. "You think there is any way you could possibly ever _not complicate my life?" _

"I'm sorry, Sir," she said softly. 

He sighed. "Not your fault. And stop calling me Sir. I'm Alec. She went to the trouble to give us all names, might as well use them, _Ralph_." He couldn't help snickering as he said the name. 

"Yes, Si..- Alec." 

"Come on, kid. Looks like I'm walking to work today, you can share the _fun_ with me." He said, shaking his head. 

Max was speeding recklessly, barely avoiding the few cars and the abundant pedestrians on her way. 

Bastard! Idiot! Stupid jerk! How could he? How could he lead her on, act so sweetly and then..- Damn him! He hadn't even had time to come down and he was already hugging a girl? The selfish, reckless, imb...- 

*Oh, god!* The bike almost toppled over as she momentarily lost control of it. 

*Shit, shit. Shit!* She almost started sobbing. How could she have been so stupid? 

Why didn't she ever _think_ before she acted. Not five minutes had passed since he had left the apartment. And he knew she was coming down any second. Even if he had wanted to be with another girl, he wouldn't have done it there. 

And that was a big 'if'. 

How could she think that about him? After all he'd said and done the last couple of days? Hell, not ten minutes before he had been furiously defending her. Accepting her without judging her. And what did she do? She immediately jumped to the worst possible conclusion. 

And the worst part was, she could imagine his smirk now. Cause _he did know her. He'd know she had seen him and he'd know she'd left in a fit of jealousy. _

She briefly considered going back to pick him up, but decided against it. He'd have plenty of time to make fun of her later. The fact that she deserved it, didn't make her any more eager to face it. 

She started to laugh. She would have been furious with him for doubting her, but Alec? No. Not him. Sure, he'd be annoyed first. But then he'd laugh at her. He was never going to let her forget this. He was going to tease her mercilessly about it. She just knew it. 

She shook her head at herself, but smiled broadly. 

She was a very lucky girl. 

Biggs was sitting in his car, looking at the decrepit wall with 'Jam Pony' painted on it. 

He had his brain properly instructed, so no recollection of the last time he'd seen that very same wall would assault him. 

He'd come here on a mission. He was just here to warn a fellow soldier his position could be compromised. 

That was all. 

He almost had himself convinced. 

After he had dropped Ralph on her destination, he had come here. He'd been sitting there for some time now. It was time to move. 

Taking a deep breath he got out of the car and walked into the place. 


	7. Assertions

A/N: As usual Infie was my beta on this, for which I am soooo grateful. But she also deserves A LOT of credit for this one. So this *BIG HUG* is for her :)

A/N2: Thank you all for reviewing. You are great! 

**Tough Call **

**Assertions **

Biggs strode into JamPony and looked around. No… No Alec. He took a couple of steps inside, down the ramp. He slowly walked to the front desk, if that cage could be called that. The man behind it had a pencil tucked behind his ear, and was looking at some papers. He didn't even glance at him when he came near. 

"Yes?" 

"Uh, hi. I was wondering if Alec is here?" Biggs asked. 

That made the blonde man look up. "What do you want with him?" 

"Er… we're uh… friends." Damn. It was so hard to say. 

"Haven't seen you around." The guy said, raising an eyebrow. 

"We are old friends. We go a long way back." 

"Oh! Did you train together?" Normal's interest was definitely stirred now. 

*What? This guy knew?* "Er… yeah, we trained together sometimes…" 

"Oh, then be welcome! He called saying he was going to be a little late, but you can wait for him here. Can I get you anything?" 

"Er… no, thanks. I'm fine." Biggs wondered what the hell was going on. Was the man insane? 

"Oh, I'm Normal, by the way." He was saying. Biggs nodded. "So… are you here to convince him to go back to the ring?" 

"Uh… sure. That's it." 

"I've been trying to, but he refuses." Normal shook his head. "But with your help, we might pull it off." 

"Right." 

Normal fidgeted a little. "Well, I have work to do, but make yourself at home." 

Biggs nodded again as he rescued his arm from Normal's grip. "Sure. Thanks man. I'll just be… over there." 

He wandered into the back, dragging his feet. He might have wondered what the hell that conversation had been about, if his mind wasn't so completely elsewhere. 

Alec was walking briskly, hands in the pockets of his jacket, the wind tousling his hair every now and then. It was getting a little too long, but it was useful to hide his barcode and besides, he liked being able to wear something different than Manticore's buzz cut. 

Ralph was walking beside him. Her steps were also brisk, but her walk was less relaxed. Her eyes were facing front, her arms straight at her sides. 

Alec sighed. 

"Relax, kiddo." 

"Sir? I'm sorry. Alec?" She clearly wasn't comfortable using his name. Too bad, cause he was not going to have people calling him sir, so she'd have to get used to it. 

"Yes?" 

"I could have handled them." 

So, she was going to offer no explanation as to why she was here… All right, he could play the game for a while. "We don't need to drag more attention to ourselves than necessary. More and more people are starting to be aware that we exist now. We did not need three big guys telling the world how a tiny little teenager beat them up, now, don't you think?" 

"Oh, please, don't." She said hastily. "You don't need to explain your decisions to me. I just wanted to let you know I could have." She added, seeking approval. 

He looked at her and nodded. "I know you could have, kid." Damn, why was he feeling like this? She was not his responsibility. Why the need to reassure her? 

She smiled up at him, a delighted expression on her face. Those techies sure knew how to make them pretty. He was sure she could win just about anyone with those sad eyes and hesitant smile. 

They walked in silence for a long time. 

Just about anyone. But not quite. 

"Yeah, so… What were you doing back there?" 

"Biggs!" He nearly jumped off his skin. He had been that deep in thought. He turned around to face the happy voice. 

Its owner was smiling at him. "Remember me? Sketchy." 

"Oh, yeah, right. How are you Sketchy?" Conversation was the last thing he needed right now. 

"Great, man. Great. Glad to see you came back. Here to visit Alec again? Oh! Did Max and Cindy ever tell you where he was that day?" Biggs took a deep breath. So much for trying to forget. He closed his eyes, and so he never saw the brunette entering through the door. 

"Boo, great to see you!" Max said. She had barely made it through the door before bumping into Original Cindy, who was on her way out. "Listen, can I take this delivery?" She followed OC back out. 

OC looked at her, confused. "Are you aiight, Boo?" 

"Yeah, I just. I don't want to see Alec." There was no point lying to OC. 

"Aiight, what's going on now?" Cindy asked, a hand on her hip. 

"Oh, nothing. He just… I just…" She sighed, frustrated. "I did something stupid, and he's going to be tormenting me about it all day. Just figured I might spare myself a few minutes of it." 

"Wait, wait, wait, wait. Did you just admit you did something stupid? You? Max Guevara?" OC faked shock. "What did you do?" 

As she watched her friend blush, the shock became real. 

"I.. I.." Max sighed. "He was standing there with another girl, and I just left. We were together, I was supposed to bring him to work, and I just left, all right?" She threw her chin up in a perfect imitation of a child in a tantrum. 

OC bit her lips to hide her smile. "Aiight, boo. You can take it." 

As she watched her friend pedal her way out of there, she threw back her head and laughed. "About time, Boo, about damn time!" she said, shaking her head with amusement. Finally. 

Ralph looked up at him warily. One minute he had been smiling benevolently at her, and the next, his eyes were searching into the depths of hers. All his playfulness was gone. 

She looked away. 

"Ralph. I asked you a question. Answer it." He never raised his voice, but she couldn't possibly miss the command in his voice. She swallowed hard. 

"I was looking for her." The truth was always the best way out. He would never fall for a lie. 

He nodded; he had gathered as much. 

"I… I remembered the license plate number of the guy that came with the papers. So I looked him up. I thought he might help me find her. It was the only thing I knew that was related to her, except for the name Max." 

Alec nodded again. Made sense. 

"Where are the others?" He watched her blink several times. She was trying to avoid crying. Alec winced, but didn't let it slide. "Where are they, Ralph?" 

"They.. I don't know… Zero.. Zero is dead sir." She started to sob. 

He put his arm around her shoulders, but insisted nevertheless, "Go on." 

"We.. We were coming back to Seattle. We heard some of our people were coming here, so we came. All of us." She wiped a tear away from her face. "We came through the forests, avoiding the roads. I.. I told him we shouldn't blur, but he.. he was in a hurry to get here. Of course the rest of us didn't. Bugler, the little kid, he can't run that fast. But Zero was always going ahead to see the terrain. 

Maybe if he hadn't… I don't know. But these people saw him. So they waited and grabbed the rest of us. Zero tried to save us, but… They shot him. He.. he died right there, in front of us." Her eyes were filled with tears again. "They just left him there, Sir." Alec's eyes narrowed, but he didn't say anything. "They held the rest of us at gunpoint. Maybe we shouldn't have fought, but we were in shock. We'd never seen something like that, sir. It was not like the training exercises. Even the ones with real victims, sir. This.. this was..." She trailed off, looking up at him, trying to find an answer. One he couldn't give her. How could he explain that you stopped caring? How your mind just blocked it, refusing to let it surface? How it never really left you, but you dealt with it at the moment, cause it was what you had to do? It was something she shouldn't have to learn. Something no one should. 

So instead, he just squeezed her shoulders and encouraged her to continue. 

She swallowed. "We went wild. I guess we caught them by surprise, I don't think they expected us to fight. But they had the guns. So we hit as many as we could and ran in different directions. I saw Bullet grab Bugler. That's the last thing I saw." She swallowed hard again. "But I heard shots. Lots of them. I wanted to go back. But someone was after me. He – I think it was a man - chased me for over three hours, sir. That was really strange, sir, it was as if he didn't tire. And every time I thought I'd lost him, he came back." She shook her head. She never saw the look in Alec's eyes as it dawned on him exactly who had caught them. "I finally lost him at a river. I sort of let it take me. It was the only thing I could think of. So when I finally got out I decided to come here. It was our idea to come to Seattle in the first place. I'm sure the others came this way. Only, it took me several days to find out exactly where I was. The rest must be here already." 

Alec looked down. How could he tell her she probably wouldn't be able to find any of them. It was a miracle she had made it alive. 

White walked into a room crowded with desks, computers, and the technicians that came with them. He was wearing a black suit and his eyes were cold, as usual. A faint smile could be seen on his lips. 

"So?" He asked, as Otto approached him. 

"It won't be long now, sir." Otto answered with a smile. 

"Don't disappoint me now, Otto. I don't want any surprises." 

Otto's smile vanished and he stood straight. "No, sir." He said and hurried back to stand behind one of the men at the computers, monitoring what was being done. 

White smirked. He loved doing that to Otto. 

An hour later, Biggs was standing by the lockers. He had stopped pacing. 

Sketchy, coming back from a run, approached him smiling, a pretty African-American woman walking beside him. "Hey man. Still no sign of Alec?" Biggs just shook his head. "Oh, this is Original Cindy. Cindy, this is Biggs." 

Biggs shook her hand. Cindy. *Oh, please, no. Please don't let her work here too.* Sure, fat chance. He remembered Alec saying he worked with one of the oh'niners. Why hadn't he put two and two together before? *Cause you spent most of the time trying _not_ to think about any of this, moron.* 

He was about to say something, when he saw the beautiful young woman standing near the entrance. She was glancing around as if looking for someone. Her eyes swept past him, and she didn't recognize him. But he knew her. Things couldn't possibly get any worst, could they? 

After one final look, she seemed content and started walking in their direction. OC, seeing the way Biggs' eyes were fixed on her friend, warned him: "She's taken, boy." 

"I know." He replied seriously. It wasn't her he was interested in, but that little bit of information only confirmed what his friend's face and silence had told him. 

As she approached them, Biggs could see her stop. She was trying to remember where she had seen him before. He knew the exact moment she recognized him. Her eyes became bigger and she blushed. He was about to speak when Sketchy said: "Max, this is Biggs. Biggs, this is Max." 

"Hello, Max." He said, nodding at her, his eyes pleading. She understood and extended her hand. 

"Nice to meet you," she said. 

Biggs' relief was short lived. As he stepped closer to shake her hand, his mouth fell open and he shook his head with shock. 

"Are you..?" 

He watched Max's expression turn to one of panic. It was all the answer he needed. And to think just a couple of minutes ago he'd been thinking things couldn't get any worse. What a joke! 

Alec looked at Ralph as they entered Jam Pony headquarters. The poor kid had been through a lot. Still, he was not satisfied with her story. There was something missing. 

He was about to ask her more, when his eyes caught sight of Max, standing in the back by the lockers. And she wasn't alone. All of his questions were forgotten as he realized who she was with. The blood in his veins stopped flowing. 

Biggs saw him almost at the same time. The room seemed to freeze as they stared at each other. Even Sketchy was aware of it and glanced warily from one to the other. 

Only Max seemed completely oblivious to the tension sizzling around her. 

Not that the two men responsible for it noticed. Alec started to walk in Biggs' direction, his eyes never leaving his prey. Biggs stiffened even more, stepping around Max to meet Alec head on. 

As she was shoved to the side – gently, but shoved nonetheless – Max realized the attention of the man before her had gone elsewhere. She turned to look and was startled to see Alec walking, actually prowling would be a better description, towards them, his eyes unreadable. 

*Oh, no! Just what I need!* How could she tell him this? 'Hey Alec, meet the guy I had sex with. Guy-I-had-sex-with, meet the man I want now.' She took a deep breath: "Alec, this… this is…" 

She shouldn't have bothered. 

"Biggs." Alec was saying, a muscle in his jaw twitching. 

"Alec." The other guy acknowledged. 

Max gaped at them. And here she had been thinking things couldn't get any worse. "You two know each other?" 

"Oh, yeah! Best buddies and all." Biggs answered ironically. It was clear, however, that he was not talking to her. 

"So nice of you to come visit!" Alec said, sarcasm filling his voice. "Funny, a couple of days ago, I got the impression you weren't coming back…" 

Max's eyes grew large. A couple of days ago? She felt the world begin to spin around her. She shook her head in denial. This couldn't possibly be happening… 

"Well, I see you have been taking care of my business…" Biggs was saying. 

Max took a couple of steps back. 

"Hey, that's what friends are for…" 

"No, no, no…" she whispered, before she turned and ran out, pushing everyone out of her way. Sky found himself sitting on the floor against Normal's counter before he could realize what had hit him. 

Alec was vaguely aware of her leaving, but was too focused on the man before him to pay attention. 

Ralph, who was now beside them, urgently said, "Sir. Sir!" She used her best soldier tone, one she knew a commander would not overlook. When he glanced at her, she looked around the room, clearly reminding him that there were other people there. 

Alec only nodded and suggested in a very polite manner, "Mind if we step someplace else to continue with the pleasantries?" 

"Not at all." Biggs nodded and headed for the stairs. He knew there was a big abandoned area upstairs. He had checked it on his previous visit. Standard procedure. 

Alec looked at Ralph out of cold gray eyes as he followed Biggs up the stairs. She nodded, needing no further instruction. She closed the door behind them and stood before it, effectively blocking the stairs. 

Looking at her, no one would have guessed she was totally terrified. 

Alec stopped three feet away from Biggs. Every muscle in his body was tense. 

Biggs was speaking again. 

"So… When were you planning on telling me, _pal_?" 

"Oh, I don't know, right after I _never saw you again_?" Alec's hands were clenched. 

"I have this little thing called a cell phone… I believe you have the number…?" 

"See, I would have tried that, but for some reason I didn't think you'd answer. But don't worry, next time, I won't make the mistake of believing you can keep your promises…" he tossed off-handedly. 

Biggs eyes grew darker if possible. But he didn't say another word. His left arm shot out in a blur of movement. 

Alec barely dodged the punch, and at the same time launched a kick at Biggs. 

Biggs used his left leg to block it, as his right fist went for Alec's stomach. 

It was stopped by a strong forearm getting in the way. Alec spun to his left, his right elbow aiming at the back of his opponent's neck. 

All it met, however, was air, as his target ducked and, using his own body for leverage, grabbed Alec to throw him over his hunched shoulders. 

Alec used the momentum to throw the other transgenic against a wall. 

Biggs was immediately on his feet and facing him. 

They circled each other and it began all over again. 

This time, Alec moved first. 

Tears were flowing down her face. They were endless. They were uncontrollable. But she wasn't really aware of them. 

Why? How? 

Her mind was trying to find those answers, yet, at the same time, dreading them. 

She was sitting on the floor of an abandoned warehouse. She just hadn't had the strength to go all the way to the Space Needle. And somehow she had known even the 'High Place' wouldn't be able to soothe her, to wash the hurt away. 

She was shaking with sobs. She was trying to think clearly, but her mind refused to work. All she heard were the voices, over and ever again, until they began to get mixed, one over the other, as they got louder. 

".. yeah, best buddies.." 

".. a couple of days ago.." 

"... taking care of my business.." 

".. what friends are for.." 

"business" 

"what friends are for" 

"buddies" 

She cried out in pain, trying to drown the voices, trying to stop them. But they just wouldn't go away. 

Fifteen minutes had gone by. No sound could be heard from the outside, except the occasional thud of a body against the floor or the distinctive sound of shattering glass. 

Inside, the two bodies were moving with a catlike grace that would have made anyone marvel, had they been able to watch. Every move was matched by a similar response. For every kick and punch, there was a block; for every maneuver, there was a counter maneuver. Sporadically, a low grunt came out of one of them, as the other caught him unawares. But those times were seldom, and they immediately returned to the rhythmic dance. 

Now it all made sense. 

Oh, damn! How could she have been so stupid? 

She had been no more to him than 'business', a way to help his friend. 

She now knew how responsible he really was. Of course he'd take care of his friend's baby. And if she came with it, so be it. He'd take care of her too. 

Okay, maybe that wasn't true. She knew he cared about her, at least as a friend. No wonder he had stopped last night. Yeah, he probably had wanted her, but it must have killed him. 

She wiped another tear from her cheek. 

And what the hell was she crying about? Not like he had ever told her he loved her or anything like that. 

She recalled him saying things didn't have to change between them. And last night: "..I want you.." "..but things are complicated enough as they are.." 

No kidding! 

She wanted to be mad at him. Being mad always worked better for her. She was used to it. But what could she be angry about? He had done nothing wrong. He had never lied to her. Maybe he hadn't told her everything, but it wasn't as if she'd given him much chance to do so… She had just let herself believe there was more… 

Another sob strangled in her throat. The bastard had even taken away her right to be angry. 

Oh, no, he had not!

Max heaved a breath, and wiped her eyes angrily. She rose to her feet and  
snuffled, but already felt stronger.  
How dare he? They? 'Take care of business?' 

Well.. she'd been taking care of herself for a hell of a lot longer than  
THEY had. And she could take care of herself again. She rubbed a hand across her tummy. She could take care of BOTH of them. 

She'd show Alec and Biggs that she didn't need either of them. 

Their movements were less graceful now. More hits were reaching their destination as the contenders got more tired. The silence that had been so complete before, was now constantly disrupted by the sound of flesh hitting flesh, bodies dropping on the floor and all sorts of grunts. Their hard breathing was a permanent flow in the dusty room. 

Punches lacked the power they'd had at the beginning of the fight. They were however, still strong enough to cause bruises or even draw a little blood now and then. 

Biggs lunged himself at Alec, who, too tired to attempt any sort of evasive maneuver, just dropped to his back. He grabbed Biggs' tee-shirt and threw the other X5 over his shoulders, with the help of his foot in Biggs' stomach. Biggs thudded heavily against one of the walls. None of his feline DNA was apparent at his landing. 

Alec, still on the floor, twisted his head to glance at him, and seeing Biggs trying unsuccessfully to lift himself off the floor, dropped his head back, breathing hard. 

Biggs saw this out of the corner of his eye and stopped his futile attempts to rise. He just rolled to his side, so that he was also lying on his back, his head very close to the wall. 

After a couple of minutes, seeing Alec trying to brace himself against a column, he used the wall behind him to raise himself into a sitting position. He watched the other transgenic wince and press a hand to his left side. He had noticed during the clash Alec was hurt there, and had used that to his advantage. You always exploited your opponent's weaknesses. 

After a couple of failed shots at it – air was still not reaching his lungs properly- he managed to say: "Broken rib?" 

Alec, having just finally managed to prop himself against the pillar, grunted without looking up, "It is now," and then added, "again." 

"Sorry." Biggs said curtly. He really was. 

"It's okay." Alec shrugged it off. Or at least he tried to. A piercing pain on his side prevented him from finishing the dismissive movement. He glanced up. "You don't look so hot yourself." He said, smiling slightly and _trying to raise his eyebrow. _

One of Biggs' eyes was closed and starting to turn purple. His nose was bleeding, as was his lower lip. He shrugged and let out a short laugh, grabbing one of his fingers with the other hand and yanking hard. A very soft popping sound was heard, as the bone snapped back into place. He let out his breath and leaned his head back against the wall. 

A few more minutes went by, until Alec finally raised his head again. 

"511" he said, too tired to think of using anything other than his friend's designation. 

"494." Biggs lifted his own head. 

"She's mine." Alec said simply, looking him straight in the eyes. His tone was final. It admitted no doubt; left no room for questioning. 

Biggs studied him. The eyes that looked back at him were cold, unrelenting. They sent a shiver down his spine. The smile was gone from Alec's features. 

Had it been anyone else but 494, he would have discarded the implicit threat coming from someone that was barely breathing and lying on the floor with a broken rib. But he knew better. He nodded. 

Still, he wasn't going to back down. 

"I'm not leaving now." 

Alec sighed. 

"I know." 


	8. Resolution

A/N: Thank you Infie, for beta-ing this and for helping me in the ever present quest against the impossible. 

A/N2: thank you all for reviewing.

**Tough Call **

**Resolution **

Logan sat on his swivel chair, rocking it distractedly as he waited for the satellite to go on-line. He'd been doing these hacks more often lately. At first, it had been a way to show her that even though they were apart, he was still fighting for her cause. 

When he'd seen her with Alec, he had been devastated. But he had understood. They couldn't touch. It was too dangerous. And Alec… Alec was a perfect example of integration into society. In the few months he'd been out, he had made more friends than Max ever had. And, as much as he hated to admit it, more than he himself had. She needed that. A normal life. He – Logan- was nothing but a reminder of bad things. 

He had known she still loved him and that Alec had just been an attempt at something lighter. He could accept that. He had been sure that in the end, he and Max would be together. 

Then, he had been so happy to hear her say nothing had happened between her and Alec. He'd felt so relieved that he had been right all along. She still loved him; she'd been trying to protect him. 

That was why it had hit him so hard to learn she had been with him after all. After the whole spiel about Alec being just a friend, Max told him she'd had sex with the guy? I was one thing when he'd gotten used to the idea of them being together. But after she'd given him hope? After he'd been so thrilled? 

And not only that! She was pregnant! 

He could have forgiven her for sleeping with other another guy, especially if she'd been in heat. Again. But a baby? She was going to have another man's baby! And Alec's, at that. 

He couldn't handle it. 

A beeping sound brought him out of his reverie. 

*Good!* 

This was the important part of his life. It was all he had left. 

He touched a few buttons on his console, sat up straight and started talking to the camera. 

* * *

_"Do not attempt to adjust your set. This is an Eyes Only streaming freedom video bulletin..." _

"Showtime, Gentlemen." White said. "Don't lose him this time." 

* * *

They'd been sitting in silence for a long time. Their breathing was back to normal. 

A truck horn sounded outside and made them both lift their heads and tear their eyes from the very interesting trails of dust on the floor. 

Biggs stood up in a fluid movement and tried to wipe the dust from the back of his pants and shirt. "Damn! These were fresh out of the store! Now I have to go steal some more!" He shook his head. 

"Well, you can always get a job, you know?" 

"Yeah, right. And what should I do? Deliver packages?" He laughed ironically, with a bitter undertone. 

"Why not?" Alec answered, looking up at him. The laughter died on Biggs' lips as he tried to assess what his friend was saying. "You'll get some money," Alec continued, "But best of all, you get Sector passes and a good cover. You're going to need all that if you're going to stick around." He shrugged, trying to sound detached. 

Biggs felt the knot in his gut begin to loosen. "You'd be all right with that." It wasn't exactly a question. 

Alec stared at him. After a pause he said. "Yeah, I will." 

Biggs looked down but started to say. "You understand I can't leave my son..-" 

"Daughter." Alec interrupted. 

"Huh?" Biggs looked up, surprised. 

"It's a girl." Alec raised his eyebrows defiantly, the beginnings of a smile twisting the corners of his lips. 

Biggs' smile wasn't hesitant. It brightened his features. "Fine." He continued. "I can't leave my _child...-" _

"Our child." Alec cut in again. This time he wasn't smiling. Not at all. 

Biggs looked at him, and after nodding to himself a couple of times, he gave his friend a half smile and said: "_Our_ child." 

Alec used his right arm to support his weight on the pillar behind him and got up. He smiled at Biggs, a real smile this time, and took a step forward. "It's good to see you." 

The other corner of Biggs' mouth joined the first in an elated grin. He opened his arms, imitating Alec's gesture. "You too, man," he said as they came together in a rough embrace and pounded each other on the back. 

* * *

"… And so the threat continues to…" 

Logan's voice faltered as he looked at the warning scrolling across one of his screens. 

The words "Broadcast security compromised! Unauthorized threat detected…" shone before his eyes. 

* * *

"Got him." One of the men behind the computers said. 

"Well, what are we waiting for?" White answered, smiling. 

* * *

Logan turned back to the camera. 

"All right, people, this is the last you're going to hear from me for a while. Stay strong in the struggle. Peace. Out." 

He rose from his chair and started deleting files from his computer. 

On second thought, he grabbed the main hard drive and his backup disks and headed for the door. A good hacker could retrieve his data back from the computer, even after it was deleted. But not if they didn't _have_ said computer. 

He turned back at the last minute, grabbed all the papers he had in his safe and headed for the kitchen. 

* * *

Alec's pained grunt broke them apart. His left hand went to his side and he winced. 

"Oh, man, sorry, I forgot!" Biggs said immediately, lifting his friend's right arm to put it over his own shoulders, lending him support. 

Alec shook his head with amusement. "Yeah. Now you're sorry. You seemed to remember where I was hurt without a problem a few minutes ago…" he raised his eyebrow. 

"Hey! You can't hold that against me! I had a great teacher." Biggs replied, his eyes shining with laughter. 

"Well, next time I see him, remind me to break his nose." 

"No problem." Biggs nodded seriously, and then added, "Just make sure you let me know next time you shave." 

"Wise-ass." Alec laughed softly, so as not to move his ribcage too much. 

"Again, I learned from the best." He started to snicker as he quickly let go of Alec to move aside. 

The elbow missed him by less than a millimeter. 

* * *

As the door opened, everyone in the room turned to stare. Various expressions, ranging from concern to fear, from expectation to mere curiosity, transformed into open mouths as the two transgenics came through it, laughing. 

Alec was walking a little awkwardly and Biggs' face was turning into a multicolored mask – the X5 healing process accelerating the changes -, and yet, looking at their attitudes, no one would have guessed they'd been fighting. They were both grinning and as they came down the stairs they seemed confident and very much at ease with each other. 

As he passed by Ralph, Alec ruffled her hair and winked at her. "Thanks, kiddo." 

She smiled back at him, relief mixing with admiration in her look. 

"Yeah… not bad for a fourteen year old!" Biggs said with a startled grin as he came down the steps behind Alec. 

"Fifteen!" Ralph retorted indignantly. 

Alec glanced from one to the other and looked interrogatory. 

"He's the one that drove me to Seattle, s..- Alec. And the one who got me the address from the license plate number." 

"Oh, great! So that's another thing I have to _thank_ you for, huh?" His tone was sarcastic, but the mirth in his eyes was unmistakable. 

"I guess." Biggs shrugged, smiling. 

"What is this? A party? Bip-bip-bip, people." 

Alec turned to look at Normal, as the rest of the Jam Pony employees hurried back to whatever it was they were supposed to be doing. 

"Hey, boss." He shot Normal his most charming smile. " I want you to meet somebody. This is my friend Biggs. He's uh…" 

"I've met him." Normal said dismissively. "But what the hell did you think you were do..- Wow! What happened to _you_?" he asked as he noticed the shape Biggs' face was in. 

"You see, we were … uh…" 

".. training." Biggs interceded. "I wanted to get right to it." He continued, after winking at Alec's puzzled face. 

"Are you all right?" Normal asked. 

"Oh, it was my fault." Alec said. "I got carried away and…" 

".. you know how good he is." Biggs finished for him. 

Normal smiled proudly, glancing at Alec. "Yes, he is the best I have ever seen." He turned to look at Biggs, poking the dark haired guy's chest with his finger. "You should be more careful, mister. Raw power such as his is not easy to control." 

Biggs coughed and said, "Yes, sir. I'll be more careful in the future." He was trying his best not to laugh. 

Alec took the chance he was offered. "You know, boss… Biggs here wants to start real training, but it's kinda hard, because he just got into town, and he can't stay unless he's got a job…" he carried of, and then, as if the idea had just occurred to him, "Hey! There wouldn't happen to be any openings here at Jam Pony now, would there?" He looked at his boss hopefully. 

Normal wiped the sweat off of his forehead and said, "Of course, of course. I think there was one…" he actually blushed at Alec's bright, approving smile. "Come, boy. Follow me. I'll give you a form and …" he continued to talk as he walked into the office. 

Biggs turned long enough to wriggle his eyebrows at Alec. 

Alec rolled his eyes and chuckled. 

* * *

A soft tapping in his arm made him turn around. The smile was still on his lips, and it brightened up when he saw who was standing behind him. But it was a short-lived gesture. 

"Glad _someone_ is havin' fun!" she said, raising her eyebrows and sticking her tongue in her cheek. 

Even as the smile vanished from his face, he turned to look around. 

"She ain't here, boo." 

He looked back into her eyes. "She left." It was not a question. 

"Well, yeah, boo. She did. Right after the two of you went off at the mouth about you taking care o'your friend's 'business'…" She looked at him out of eyes filled with disapproval. 

He closed his eyes. "Shit!" His voice was barely a whisper. 

"You can say that again, suga'!" 

He ran his hand through his hair. 

"I know you big, bad boys need to act all brave an' proud and all, but seriously!" She shook her head. "How would _you_ feel if someone said they was with ya to help out a friend?" 

"You know I didn't…" He didn't finish. 

"I know, Boo." She had a hard time keeping the condemning edge in her voice. Alec had a way of getting to her that was remarkable. Especially since he was a _man_. "But I ain't the one that matters." 

He nodded. "Where do you think..?" 

"Beats me! She could be anywhere. You know m'girl's got this thing for runnin'.." 

She said sadly. 

"I'll go find her." 

She couldn't keep the warmth from showing in her eyes. She wasn't sure why, but he always managed to creep into her heart, ever since she'd first met him. Even despite Max's protestations to the contrary, she had liked him. True, he was irritating at times. But he was also very troubled. He had a dark past, _and_ he tried his best not to let it affect the people around him. OC respected that. 

"You do that, Alec," she said softly. 

* * *

The young woman stood in the 'at ease' pose that only soldiers considered relaxed. Her feet were exactly twelve inches apart from each other, her hands were laced together at her back, her chin was held up high and her features were devoid of emotion. 

She was tall, but not so much so that it would attract excessive attention to her. Her eyes were the color of smoke and her hair was gray, or at least it looked that way. The black and silver strands formed an indistinguishable maze. 

When she talked she only moved the necessary muscles. The rest of her face remained impassive. 

Her tone carried no emotion; it was simply stating a fact. "It's a lie." Her voice was cold, steely. It harmonized with the rest of her. 

The man sitting in front of her laughed softly. "Don't you think that is a somehow far fetched conclusion? Yes, she hasn't called back. But that doesn't mean she's lying. Maybe she still didn't find her. She just said she was making progress." 

The woman only shook her head. "That is not what I was referring to. She was lying before. About him." 

"How do you know that?" 

"She said she'd never seen him before. That is not possible." 

"Maybe sh..-" 

"No, sir. No maybes. She lied." 

The man remained silent for a while, and then asked, "Why would she lie about that?" 

"I don't know why, sir. But she did." 

* * *

Ralph watched Alec out of the corner of her eyes. She had seen the way his demeanor had changed once he had started talking to that girl. 

She was sure it had to do with Max. 

She had really admired Max when they'd first met. Max seemed so independent, so strong, so sure of herself, of what was right and wrong. 

All Ralph and the others had thought about when they decided to go back to Seattle was finding _them_. Max and 49- Alec. They had known everything would be okay once they found them. It had been the same after she'd got out of that freezing water. Finding them was all she could think about. They'd make everything all right. 

But now she was so confused. Why was Max acting like this? First, at that building, she had left, leaving Alec behind. Why would she do that? And later, she had been so strange. She had just run out. 

And even worse, Ralph was sure it was Max the men had fought over. She had been really scared. And she didn't understand what was going on. It had been obvious they were going to come to blows. Why hadn't Max stopped them? Didn't she realize what could happen? X5s were very good fighters. And they fought to kill. 

Ralph had been really relieved to see them both come out of that place smiling. 

But now Alec was frowning again. 

Perhaps she could talk to Biggs later, maybe he would be able to explain it to her, because right now Ralph was having a really hard time trying not to hate Max. She never questioned why that feeling didn't extend to Alec. _He_ could do no wrong. 

Startled, she turned back to look at the guy talking to her- Skippy, Skeety? Sketchy! That was it – and seeing he was expecting an answer from her, she asked very sweetly, the way Fixit had taught her once, when they were discussing Ralph's tendency to impatience: "I'm sorry, could you please repeat that for me?" 

* * *

Biggs left the office smiling. "So… _Golden Boy_… wanna show me the place?" The amusement was unmistakable in his voice and in the way he emphasized Normal's favorite name for him. 

Alec, however didn't rise to the bait. 

"Hey, Biggs, come here. Have you met Cindy?" 

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I've had the pleasure." He said smiling charmingly to OC. 

"What? They taught you guys flirting back at Manticore?" 

"Uh…" He looked at Alec. 

"She's cool." 

"Oh! Then yes, they did." He said, smiling brightly. 

"Don't waste it on me." Original Cindy just shook her curls and moved away. 

"What did I do now?" Biggs asked Alec, frowning. 

"Don't worry, I'll tell you about it later. Listen, Biggs, you think you can get the hang of the job by yourself? Cause I have something to do." 

"Oh, gee, Alec, I don't know... This is such a complicated job…" 

Alec took the sarcasm in, raising his hand as an apology. "Okay, okay, I need another favor from you." 

"What can I do for you?" 

"I need you to get some answers from her." He pointed his head at the blonde still standing by the stairs, with Sketchy hovering around her. 

Biggs groaned. "No, please, not Ralph." He pleaded. 

Alec smirked. "Those big, pretty eyes give you a hard time?" Biggs just nodded. "Sorry, man." Alec said understandingly, but continued straight back to business. He told Biggs what he knew so far. "She told me how she escaped, but there's something missing. Where did you find her?" Biggs told him, briefly. "See? I mean, she told me she was lost, but.. I need you to tell me how she got to where you found her." He looked at Biggs, and he nodded. 

"Don't worry, I'll get it out of her." 

Alec gave him a half smile and turned to leave. He was stopped by Biggs' hand on his arm. "Wait, where are you going?" When Alec just raised an eyebrow at him, he said. "Hey, if you leave me with all the work, the least you can do is tell me why." 

"I have to go find Max." 

"Oh, great! So Biggs has to stay here, while you go looking for a girl! Typical!" He said, with a playful tone. One he regretted immediately as his friend raised his eyes to look at him. 

"I need to find her." Was all Alec said. 

Biggs couldn't remember the last time he'd seen him show so much emotion. It was only for an instant, but Biggs had seen the turmoil behind the hazel pools that were his friend's eyes. Yes, Alec's mask would go away some times, but only to show what he wanted to. Like anger, or that icy glare he sometimes shot people. Even when he was happy, there was always something unreachable about his gaze. But this? He couldn't begin to imagine what Alec was going through. And it scared him. He didn't know this Alec. 

None of Biggs' thoughts showed on his face. He too was well trained in hiding his emotions. Instead, he said simply, "No problem. I'll take care of everything." 

"Thanks." 

* * *

The men entered the apartment all at once. They spread to cover the different rooms. White and Otto walked straight to the computers in the den, as the rest of the men were yelling 'clear' around them. 

One quick look assured White the main computer was gone. He started rummaging for any leftover information, but to no avail. He moved to the kitchen, where he saw the big pile of ashes in the sink. He roared in frustration, taking his gun out and shooting at the sink, the refrigerator, the microwave… Otto had to dodge to avoid getting hit. 

The rest of the men took their cue and started shooting, destroying everything around them. 

* * *

"Maybe I should go there myself." 

"With all due respect sir, that's a negative. You've already exposed yourself far more than you should have." 

"You worry too much." 

"No, sir, I don't. I never worry. I analyze the situation." 

He chuckled at that. "Right now, he's too busy chasing his own tail. As much as he likes to protest otherwise, he always lets emotions cloud his judgment. Look at what he's doing right now." 

"That is his weakness, and it's for us to take advantage of. But we mustn't imitate him." 

He smiled proudly at her. "As usual, Nicole, you are right. So what do you suggest?" 


	9. The Low Down

A/N: My thanks, as usual, go to Infie for checking this out for me :). And to all the people who read this and especially those of you who review. (Sorry this took so long.) 

Tough Call The Low Down 

Biggs watched him as he moved away, awkwardly trying to put his jacket back on. His face was intent, not showing the pain that the damaged rib had to be causing him. There was the soldier he knew. The... "Shit!" he muttered, and then louder, "Alec!" He trotted to catch up to him. 

"Not now, Biggs." 

"Yes, now, Alec. I have to tell you something." 

"I know, but it can wait." 

"No it can't. You... Wait a minute. What do you mean, 'you know'?" 

Alec looked at him. "Well, you came back," he said simply. 

Biggs shook his head, smiling. He put his hand on Alec's shoulder to prevent him from leaving. "Just be careful, all right? Someone is on to you." 

Alec stopped. "Who?" 

"I overheard some guys in a museum in Salem. They said they'd be looking for you when you went to sell what you stole." 

"Don't worry, I'm not selling it anymore. Besides," he looked at Biggs pointedly. "You think I'd be stupid enough to get caught on a deal? I had it covered, my man." 

Biggs rolled his eyes. "I knew you would. But that's not the bad part. This people were really strange, Alec. Creepy. They called themselves Familiars _and_ they had a picture of you." 

"Ah! My very good friend Ames." He patted Biggs on the shoulder. "It's okay. They've known about me for a long time." He smirked, "I'm just not that easy to get rid of." He winked at his friend. "Listen, thanks for the warning. I'll tell you all about these Familiars later, okay? I have to go now. I...-" He was interrupted by Biggs. 

"I don't think you have to go. Not anymore." 

Alec didn't need the heads up. He had sensed the exact minute she had walked in. He turned to look at her and his heart dropped. 

She'd never looked more beautiful. Or more unreachable. 

Max walked down the ramp and said cheerfully, "Any new packages for me, Normal? I'll be right with ya." She continued her way. 

"Max." Alec called her softly as she passed by them. 

She turned her head to look at him. Her eyes were cold and distant. "Oh, Alec, sorry, didn't see you," she said in the irritating clipped voice he hated so much. She tilted her head to the side. "Oh! And look who is here too! Biggs, wasn't it?" Biggs only nodded, watching her warily. "Well, great to see you both, gentlemen, " she said with the falsest smile Alec had ever seen. It hurt just looking at it. "Now, if you'll excuse me…" She turned and continued her way to the lockers. 

"Wait, Max, I need to talk to you." He followed her. 

"Oh, do you?" She replied, her voice dripping sarcasm. "Funny. Are you sure you want to talk _to_ me, instead of over me?" 

"Look, I know. I should have told you." He ran a hand through his hair, "I just…" he hesitated. 

"You just… what?" she raised her eyebrows. "No, wait, let me guess. You thought it would be awkward for me and wanted to spare my feelings?" 

He opened his mouth but closed it again. He wished he could say yes, but he didn't want to lie to her, at least as long as he could avoid it. But how could he explain to her that he hadn't said anything because Biggs was his best friend and he had been gone. That he had been torn apart at the thought of never seeing him again, but at the same time was happy that Biggs wasn't around her anymore. How guilty he had felt. In the end, it was all about him. He hadn't really thought of her, at least not that way. 

Max watched him say nothing out of disdainful eyes. She nodded, smirking scornfully. "Yeah, I didn't think so." She turned to leave again and he grabbed her by the wrist. "Look, Max, it's complicated, I…-" 

She jerked her hand free in a furious movement. "Don't you dare touch me again," she hissed. 

"Max, listen to me. What you heard before, I didn't mean that. It was just a problem between Biggs and me, and we used words we didn't really mean. We had a little argument, but that's over now." 

"What? You finally decided which one of you would be taking care of the load? _So_ glad _you guys could work it out! I guess I should be flattered now…" _

"No, Max, I didn't m-" 

"Well, you'll have to excuse me, " she spoke over his words, "cause frankly, I'm not." 

She turned on her heel, this time careful to move out of his reach, and walked briskly towards the exit. 

He moved to follow her, but stopped. She was already in the main hall. He was not going to go chasing after her in front of everybody, just to be rejected. He told himself it was to avoid drawing any more attention to them, since he and Biggs had done enough of that today. But he knew he was not being honest with himself. 

Well, and what the hell was wrong with not wanting all the ordinaries, _and_ his friends, watch him run after Max? 

He tried to silence the part of him that reminded him he'd pretty much humiliated her the same way earlier. 

He clung to the thought that she had at least come back, that she had not run away. That was good, right? He had to believe that. 

He watched her walk by Biggs, shooting the other X5 a brief, cold glance. She grabbed a couple of boxes from over the counter and left again. 

His eyes fell on OC's surprised face. Max had looked right through her. She looked back at him, her eyes showing her worry even from across the room. 

Alec nodded at her. 

It was not good. Not good at all. 

Biggs' eyes wandered towards his friend, who was in the back, arguing with Max. *Shit.* 

He felt the guilt begin to crawl back into him. *Oh, well. It was nice to get rid of it for … what? Ten minutes?* 

Not like he had really expected everything to be okay, just cause Alec had accepted having him around. He sighed. 

He clung to the knowledge that he had his friend back. Even with the uneasiness that was sure to manifest itself, it felt damn nice. 

He turned to see Ralph standing at his side. She was frowning. "What's up, pretty eyes?" 

She flushed. No matter how hard she tried to act all grown up, in the end, she was still a kid. Biggs made a note of it. Useful information. 

Max walked by them and shot Biggs an icy glare. She didn't even look at Ralph. 

The X6 hesitated, but then said, "I don't understand." 

He snorted. "Join the club, honey." But then he softened his tone. "That's okay. It's a complicated situation." He raised a hand. "No. I can't tell you about it. First, because it's not my place to do so, and second, cause I only know part of it." 

She blew the air out of her lungs with a loud noise and then pouted. He wondered if they had taught her that at Manticore. 

"So, kid, what do you say we go buy me a pair of sunglasses?" At her questioning look, he continued. "Orders from the boss. Apparently it's not fashionable to deliver packages with a yellow-green eye." 

After one last glance at Alec, who was still standing where Max had left him, she shrugged and said, "Okay." 

"I'm going over there, sir." 

"Do you think it's a good idea?" 

"We can't waste any more time." 

"And you think what I did is just that, a waste of time…" 

She looked straight ahead, but didn't hesitate. "I do, sir." 

"But it was too good an opportunity to pass up, young lady. She knew 452. And more important, 452 knows her." 

"That is all correct, sir. But if you had consulted with me first… " If he didn't know it was impossible, he would have sworn there had been the slightest inflexion in her voice. Reproach. "I could have arranged for someone to go with her, or at the very least, follow her." 

"Ah!" he nodded. "Yes, yes, thinking ahead and all that. That's why you are so very valuable to me as an assistant." 

She stood even straighter, but added. "I would be of much more help if you told me the problems so I can assist you in solving them." 

He chuckled. "Very well. I'll _try_ to keep that in mind." 

For an instant, there was a spark in her eyes, the closest thing to a smile she ever got, and he had to do his best not to smile back. She'd only be embarrassed. Instead, he just asked, "So... When are you leaving?" 

"Seventeen minutes, sir." 

He nodded. "Have a good trip, Nicole." 

"Yes, sir." She walked towards the door with a decided stride. 

He shook his head amused. When he heard the outer door close, he said without raising his voice, "627." 

The door immediately opened and a young, blonde man of pale complexion walked in. "You called, sir?" 

"Just checking." He said. 

627 looked at him strangely, but didn't say anything. 

"So, what if I asked you for a coffee?" 

"I'll get 256 to bring it sir." 

"That's ok. You can go back out." 

"Yes, sir." 

So he now had a 'shadow'. She learned fast. 

As the door closed again he shook his head with a smile and went back to the documents before him. 

"What do you think of these?" Biggs asked with a wicked smile. 

Ralph looked up from the floor she'd been staring at for the past five minutes, and her eyes opened wide. "I ... uhm ... I ..." 

"What? Speechless?" 

"Er... yeah." She said, not able to take her eyes from his face. 

"Hey! They cover my yellowish eye completely." He said, making a show of checking himself in the mirror. 

"Yeah..." She nodded her agreement. "Along with half your face." 

He grinned back at her but hastily took the glasses off. "Can't have that, you know. I'd never deprive all the ladies out there of my handsome features." 

This time she couldn't suppress a giggle. 

He took another pair that was lying a little apart from the others over the store counter and tried them on. 

"Yes, those will do." 

He smiled again. "Come on, pick a pair for yourself." He watched her eyes briefly sparkle, but she immediately looked down. 

"I have no money." 

"Don't worry, they are on me." Her eyes opened widely. "Come on, try them on." 

She looked around. "Which ones?" 

He shrugged. "All of them!" He watched her delighted smile as she started to gather different models and a feral glint of satisfaction shone in his eyes. He'd known it! All girls loved to shop. 

He put the ones he'd chosen for himself back on and tapped her shoulder. "They cover it, right?" 

"Yes, they do." Her attention went back to her own selections. "I don't know why you bother, though. It'll be gone in a few hours anyway." 

"Exactly." 

"Oh! I see." She looked disappointed. "I'd never think of stuff like that!" 

"The years, my friend. They make us wiser." he winked. "Plus, having learned plenty of stuff the hard way." For an instant his eyes were unfocussed, but then he smiled again. "You X6s weren't sent on too many missions were you?" He asked casually. 

She shook her head, her eyes not leaving her reflection in the mirror. "No, I'd never been outside of Manticore until it was burnt down." She blushed, remembering. "One of the first things we did was rob a mini-market. Not very smoothly either. That's how we ran into Alec." 

"Oh?" he asked, with just enough curiosity in his voice to encourage her to continue. *That's right, honey, keep talking to ole Biggs.* 

"Yeah," she smiled, "He wasn't too happy with us. Said we had ruined a deal he had going. He seemed more annoyed than angry, though. I was very surprised." 

Biggs chuckled. "Not the mean, tough guy he was reputed to be, huh?" His tone was light, but his eyes behind the shades were studying her. 

"Yeah," she nodded. "He tried to warn us not to go to a gathering point, but Bullet – 681- had to refuse. The orders had come from a higher authority. I thought he was going to kill us, but he just smiled and let us make our own decision. And afterwards he came to help us rescue Max. But you know what? He didn't know she'd been captured, at least not until he caught up with us, and he came anyway. For us," her bright eyes looked at him. "Even after we had disobeyed him." 

"Yes, he's pretty special." She nodded, looking serious. "You keep referring to 'us'... where are these others?" 

She looked down. "I don't know." 

He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Come on, tell me about it." He did not feel particularly good about this assignment so far, but since when did he get to choose his missions? 

She told him about going back to Seattle and escaping from the person following her. She didn't cry, but Biggs could see the moisture in her eyes, the trembling of her lips. 

"But that's not when I found you, right? ... your clothes seemed pretty unharmed." 

"Yeah... I was lost, didn't know where I was... I wandered around until I found this old man. Actually, I think he found me. I was sitting under a tree, all wet and exhausted and cold. I was trying not to fall asleep, but I'm not sure if I did or not... And then I saw this old man. I know I should have been wary, but somehow, I felt like I knew him. It was weird. He covered me with a blanket. He asked me what happened and after I told him, he said he would send some people to look for the others. I told him the co-ordinates where I had last seen them." She fidgeted with the sleeve of her jacket. "He gave me new clothes, and then took me to this place, don't know exactly where. He gave me food and a place to stay that night. And he knew about us. He called me by my designation. He was really nice. Only..." 

Biggs' eyes narrowed. "Only?" It came out harsher than he intended. 

Ralph was looking down again, but suddenly looked up at him. "I think I may have told him too much." She bit her lower lip. 

"Thank you very much, ma'am." She said charmingly, a full, bright smile showing her white teeth. 

The old woman looked at the slim girl in front of her. With those worn out pants and oversized tee shirt, one hand in her jacket pocket and the other loosely holding the clipboard she'd just been handed back, balanced on the balls of her feet, and the rhythmically moving jaw, no doubt by courtesy of some gum, the girl looked exactly like her twelve year old granddaughter. 

"Here you go, dear." She said, handing over a few bills. "And take care, you should be at home and not working, sweetheart." 

She watched the brown eyes suddenly change, looking much older. The old woman gave an involuntary little jump backwards. 

"Don't worry, ma'am. I'm much stronger than I seem." 

And with that she turned around and left, a satisfied smile lingering on her lips. 

"He was so kind... And he started to ask me questions and I was really tired... I didn't realize until later that he was making me talk, that I was telling him a lot of stuff..." 

"Kind of like you are telling me?" It was a calculated risk. He needed her to trust him. It wouldn't do if she realized this later and suddenly stopped talking. 

"Yes. Exactly." 

So maybe she wasn't as naive as he had thought. 

"If you know this, why do you keep talking to me?" 

"It's different. You are one of us." 

"That doesn't mean you can trust me." 

"Not based on just that. But Alec trusts you, you are his friend." 

"You think we are friends just cause you saw us laughing together?" 

"No. Because he didn't kill you." 

Biggs opened his mouth, but closed it again. As much as he would like to protest her statement, he knew she was right. They had been furious at each other, but there was never any threat of death. And as evenly matched as they both were, Biggs would not want to find out what it was like to have Alec really wanting to kill him. He nodded at her. "So..." 

She heaved a deep sigh, but plunged into it. The words rapidly stumbling out of her mouth, as if the continuous flow would make it easier. Biggs didn't utter a word. He only nodded occasionally, not wanting to interrupt her discourse. 

"He asked me where I was going and why. So I told him Seattle and that I was going there to find this X5 that had helped us before. He asked how I was going to find her, and I told him about having her friend's license plate numbers. He told me I should stay with him, that maybe this X5 wouldn't be able to help me. And so I explained to him that she would help me, us, cause to her we were very important, that she was the one that had set us free, that she cared. He said he understood. He let me stay, told me I needed to rest for a few days. I was really tired, so I agreed." She paused to breathe. " But then the next day, he came to wake me up late – I had been sleeping for most of the day – and told me I had to go, that I couldn't stay there anymore. And then he drove me to this road, and we just sat there in his car. He talked the whole time. I was really confused, he had made me leave in such a hurry and now we were wasting time. I asked him about it, but he just said he couldn't drive me all the way here, but he wanted to make sure I got here okay. He made me promise I would call him as soon as I got to Seattle and then, when I found the girl, so that he wouldn't be worrying." She stopped talking for a moment and looked at Biggs. "He seemed really concerned, like he really cared." She looked back down. "I know that's not an excuse." 

Biggs felt really bad for her. But his job was not done. "Go on." He whispered softly. 

"After a while, his cell phone rang. I couldn't hear what the person at the other end was saying, but as he hung up he turned to me and said I should step out, that he had to go back now." She swallowed. "And just before he left, he asked me if by any chance I had run into a guy that went by the name of 'Alec'. That's when I realized I had been talking too much. Of course, I said no. And then he asked me if I knew X5-494, that he was supposed to be around Seattle. I told him I had no idea, cause I didn't know 494 so I wouldn't know. I asked him why, but he just shrugged and drove off. A- And I started to walk this way." Her voice shook a little. "And yours was the first car to pass by me, not four minutes after he left. So I… I was a little suspicious. I thought maybe he had sent you, that you were with him." She looked at him and bit her lips. "I guess it was just a coincidence." 

Biggs remained thoughtful. "This guy... he was not too tall, wrinkled skin, straight nose? He used a cane?" At her surprised nod, he asked, "What was he wearing when he came to get you?" 

"Uhm.. Yellow long-sleeved shirt, brown pants, brown shoes, gilded watch, and a horrible green wool vest." She answered readily. 

Biggs shook his head. "Damn it!" he cursed himself. Then he looked at her. "It wasn't a coincidence. I've seen this guy before." He ran a hand through his hair. "And that phone call he got? He probably had someone posted somewhere along the road that alerted him of my approach." He tapped his fingers absently on his thigh. *Shit.* This was not good. The guy was that old man that had been at the museum, Biggs was sure of that. Which meant the guy had known _what_, if not exactly who, Biggs was. He didn't like that. But the scary part was he had known Biggs would go back to Seattle. Biggs refused to believe the man had read his mind. First, because he was obviously too old to be Psy Ops, and second because Biggs hadn't been thinking about going back to Seattle at the time. This could only mean one thing... the guy had known what he'd do even before Biggs himself did. He felt a shiver run through him. He put the thought away and focused on the girl before him. 

"There's one more thing," she said shakily. He remained silent. "I… I c-called him." 

"At the hacker's." Biggs said. 

"It was the only time I was alone. But I didn't tell him anything." She added hastily. "Just that I was in Seattle and was working on finding her." 

Biggs took a deep breath. "Listen, kid, I understand you not trusting me. But why didn't you tell Alec?" He took the glasses off, his eyes fixed on her face. 

Her lips started to tremble and he could see the color staining her cheeks. 

"I was scared." She admitted. 

"Of Alec?" Biggs asked incredulously. 

"Not _of _him." She shook her head no. "I just knew I would disappoint him." 

Biggs had to fight back the urge to comfort her. He knew exactly what she meant. Alec had that effect on him too. And, Biggs suspected, a lot of others as well. 

"You do understand I will have to tell him all this, don't you?" She nodded seriously. "And that he may want to ask you some questions himself?" 

"Yes, I know. I'm not looking forward to it, but..." she trailed off, shrugging, trying to regain her aloofness. 

"But it will be easier, cause now *I* get to tell him most of it, huh?" He watched her blush and smiled. "Don't worry, not going to hold that against you. " He winked. "I guess I would have done the same thing if I had been in your position." At her disbelieving look, he further clarified, "I meant the part about wanting to tell _me_ instead of _him_. I wouldn't worry about disappointing _me_ either," he finished with a wry grin. 

"Oh! It's not that I don't... That you are not... that..." 

He raised his hand for her to stop, smiling at her concerned expression. "I was just joking, kid. I know it's got nothing to do with me. It's just that Alec is... well... Alec." 

He didn't need to add anything. She understood. 

Logan walked in and looked around. The place was a dump. He stiffened his back. It didn't matter. 

He wasn't sure whether it was the paint or just an effect of the dim light, but everything looked... green. 

He placed the computer on the floor and neatly piled up all the disks on top of it. He took a handkerchief out and dusted a chair, leaving no corner of it untouched. He folded the cloth back up and put it on top of the disks. 

After one final look, he nodded with satisfaction and sat on the chair, his hands resting on his knees, his back straight. 

He started to shake. 

Two more packages to go. 

She was still riding on the surge of energy her resolution had brought with it. 

She felt free. She could do anything she wanted. She didn't need any male to tell her what to do. 

No more Logan to judge her. No more feeling like she had to answer to him. No more trying to hide who she was. 

She knew he had probably meant well, hell, _they both _had probably meant well, 

but she was through listening to them. 

It was a great feeling. 

So what if her heart still jumped at the sight of _him_, like it had earlier today at Jam Pony? She had still managed to say what she had to say to him and walk away. 

She was tough. 

She could also survive with that little ache in her heart. She would learn to ignore it and eventually it would go away. 

She was sure of it. 


	10. Arrangements

A/N: Thank you so much Inf for checking this out for me. You are the best! And to all the people who read this and especially those of you who review. (Sorry this took so long- again!) 

**Tough Call** **Arrangements**

The petite girl walked into a dust covered room and glanced around at its occupants. 

"Hey, guys! Guess who's got a new identity?" She winked at the boy and the girl that came running towards her. 

"Really?" 

"Cool!" 

"Who are you now?" 

"I am now: Regina Winthorp." She announced with a smile. 

"Are you sure there won't be any trouble?" The boy asked. 

"Relax, 331, I know what I'm doing, okay? The woman is like a thousand years old. She can barely walk. I doubt she ever leaves the house." She said smugly. "Besides... a new identity is not all I got from her." 

The other two were immediately asking her what else, their eager eyes intent on her. Regina laughed to herself. Cat DNA! 

"Well, I acted all nice and friendly and ... I scored five –FIVE- bucks!" 

She produced a bag from her backpack and dangled it, smiling at their wide eyed expressions. Warm food. None of them, including Regina, could remember the last time they'd had any. 

They sat down reverently around the small boxes of Chinese food and after nodding together, they started to eat, relishing every bite. 

Regina smiled at how easy it was to keep X6s happy. 

* * *

"Hey, Alec! Got a sec?" 

Alec took his eyes away from the inside of his locker only long enough to glance at Biggs. "Yeah?" 

"Listen, I was wondering... The last time I was here I saw that your apartment was empty... and I was wondering if it would be okay with you, if I… you know.. crashed there." 

"Sure, no problem." When Biggs didn't move away and continued to look at him, Alec had to take a deep breath. *All right, 494. Focus. What are you missing? ... Right!* "So, maybe Ralph could stay with you? I mean, it's a big apartment..." _Do we need you to keep an eye on her?_

"I don't know... If you say so.." _I don't think so. Your call._

"Like hell she will!" OC interrupted, making both men turn to look at her. 

"I'm sorry?" Biggs asked, a little startled. Alec just looked at her questioningly. 

"I assume this Ralph you are talking about is blondie over there? Well, Original Cindy is not having any of that!" She shook her head vehemently. 

"Uhm... Cindy?" Alec raised his left eyebrow. 

"Well, I ain't letting this one here alone with that little girl!" 

Biggs' eyes narrowed. "Look, lady, I don't know what the hell you've got against me, but I would never, ever hurt that kid!" 

OC didn't back down, "Oh! And I guess I'm supposed to take your word on that, huh?" 

"People!" Alec stepped in, without raising his voice. "I understand there's no reason why you should trust someone you don't know, but let's not make accusations either." He was too tired for this. "Please?" He added, looking at the brunette, who did not look convinced at all but seemed willing to go along with him for the time being. He turned to look at Biggs. His friend caught the words he had not said: _Focus, soldier._ He nodded his understanding, a little embarrassed. 

"Fine, but what's it gonna be?" She put her hand on her hip and tapped her foot. 

"Well... you think she can stay with her and Max?" Biggs asked, signaling OC. "But, I mean, there's no need for them to be all uncomfortable, right?" _I'm really not crazy about that idea._

Alec shook his head and said firmly. "No, there is not enough room there." _I'm not leaving her alone with Max._ "Well... she could always stay with me and Joshua..." 

Biggs looked at him, "Joshua? Is that the big dog-guy you told me about?" He put a slight emphasis on the word 'big'. 

"Yep." 

"Good." Biggs nodded his agreement, acknowledging the end of their silent exchange. A big guy to watch over her was just fine by him. "I'll go tell her." With that, he left them alone. 

"You know what, suga'? I think there's something else that's not good about your sleeping arrangement..." 

"Oh?" 

"Well, Max said something to me earlier… about you and some girl? And then you showed up with this Ralph, so I guess she's the same person. And… I don't think you living with her is gonna help you get into m'girl's good graces." 

For an instant she thought she saw a spark in his eyes, but it was immediately gone and she wasn't sure. He nodded. He'd already decided he couldn't stay with Ralph and Joshua, but for a different reason. 

"I guess you're right." 

"Will you be okay staying with _him_?" They were both looking at Biggs now. 

Alec turned to look at her. "He's a pretty good guy, you know?" 

"Sorry, Boo, but he's gonna have to prove that to Original Cindy, cause all I know about him so far is whenever he is around, there's trouble." 

"He will." Was all Alec could say. He should have argued a little more, say it was not Biggs' fault. He should be taking care of other things as well. His mind just wasn't into it. 

He took another deep breath, shaking his head, and trying to clear his thoughts. 

He felt an arm around his waist and he rested his chin on the top of her head. "Everything will be okay, boo." She said softly. Alec was not sure which of them she was trying to convince. 

"I know it will. It's about time my luck started to change a bit, don't you think?" 

She nodded and squeezed him one last time, before letting go of him. "Tonight at Crash." When he was about to protest, she shook her head firmly. "Be there." She left. 

He watched her go while walking over to Biggs, his demeanor back to his usual carefree self. "Hey, buddy, guess what? We're gonna be roomies again." 

* * *

OC was deep in thought when she heard the door open. She raised her head. 

"Hey, boo." She said, her eyes searching Max's face. She found nothing. She stood up and went to her. "Are you aiight, boo?" When she didn't get an answer, she asked. "You want to tell Original Cindy about it?" 

"No." But then, seeing her friend's concerned face, she added, "I'm okay, Cindy. Really." 

"Aiight, honey, if you say so..." She could see something had changed in her friend. She seemed calmer, stronger somehow. OC hesitated for a second, but then she also saw the hurt buried deep down in those big brown eyes. And she got her resolve back. 

"Are you coming to Crash with me tonight?" 

"I..." Max started to shake her head, but seemed to change her mind. "Sure, why not?" She said, raising her chin. 

OC smiled. "That's my boo!" 

* * *

"So... These people belong to a five thousand years old cult, they don't feel pain, they are as strong as we are and they want to wipe us off of the face of the earth. That about it?" They had already dropped Ralph at Joshua's. 

"Er.. yeah." Alec had to smile despite himself. He liked having Biggs around. Ironically enough, he was a nice distraction. "And from what you told me, they can also 'smell' us." 

Biggs nodded. "And they call _us_ freaks!" he said, throwing up his hands. 

"I know!" Alec rolled his eyes. 

They came out of the stairs and walked down the corridor smiling and shaking their heads. As they approached door number Four they both turned serious and stopped walking at the same time. They exchanged a look and Alec dropped his bag on the floor, taking his gun out and checking it efficiently. Biggs' belongings suffered a similar fate, before he walked back the way they had come from until he reached a window and exited through it. 

Alec moved to the door, and after listening carefully, he opened the door and pointed his gun at the guy standing near the door to the bathroom. 

"Don't move." He said softly, purposefully cocking the gun so it sounded loud and clear. 

"Alec?" The guy asked. 

Alec frowned. "Logan?" He lowered his gun. "What the hell are you doing here?" 

* * *

"Pass me that, will you?" Max asked extending her hand. When, after a couple of seconds nothing happened, she turned around, her other hand still holding her hair against the top of her head. She grabbed the brush from the small table beside her friend, who continued to look into space, frowning. 

She turned back to the mirror, but kept an eye on OC's reflection. "Are you all right, girlfriend?" she asked after a while. 

OC seemed to snap out of a trance and she looked at Max in the mirror. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little worried, that's all." 

Max's eyes were shuttered. "If you are worried about me, don't be." 

"Huh? Oh, no! Well, yes, I am, but that ain't what I was thinking 'bout." She had to bite her lip not to laugh at Max's disoriented expression. She loved her friend, but a little bit of that self-centeredness she could do without. 

"Ok, what is it then?" Max asked warily. 

"Ralph." 

"Ralph?" That caught her off-guard. "Who is Ralph?" 

OC raised her eyebrows. "Cute little blond thing, beautiful eyes?" When Max continued to stare at her she threw her hands up. "She was at Jam Pony today. I didn't talk to her much, but she said you knew her?" 

She watched Max concentrate, no doubt trying to remember. "Ralph!" She exclaimed suddenly. "X6 Ralph?" 

"Um… X6? Well, see I didn't ask her. But If that is a Manticore thing, then yep. Cause that kid is definitely Manticore." 

Max continued to shake her head. "She was there today! I didn't even say hi to her!" She started to pace, her hair tumbling down, completely forgotten. "I can't believe it! I didn't even see her! And why? Because of those stupid, idiot ... Ugh! Never mind." She suddenly stopped and asked. "Why the hell do we put up with men?" 

"Don't be asking me, sweetheart" OC chuckled. "Cause I have nooo idea!" 

Max shook her head and went back to the mirror, running the brush furiously through her hair and muttering about the worthlessness of all men. OC just looked at her. 

"Oh, right!" Max said suddenly. "You said you were worried about Ralph! Why? Is something wrong with her? What happened? Did those idiots do something to her? Cause if they did, I'm gonna..." 

"Whoa! Wait up! Nothing is wrong with her. Not yet. I just don't like this one damn bit." 

"What?" 

"Well, you see, she needed a place to stay. So did that guy Biggs. So Alec suggested they use his old apartment, seeing as it is empty an' all... But naturally, I said no. We can't have that little kid living alone with a guy. So Alec said maybe he could move back to his old place with Biggs and Ralph could stay with Joshua..." 

Max ignored the jab of pain she felt at every mention of _his name and focused on what her friend was saying. "Sounds like a plan to me... What's the problem?" _

"What's the problem? Boo, it was bad enough when Doggie-dog was living alone, but now? It's like leaving not one, but _two_ children alone in the house! Who's gonna look after them? See that they don't get in trouble?" 

"You're right! That jerk! He couldn't for once do the right thing and stay with them! No! He had to go live with his 'buddy'!" 

"And would you rather he stayed there with them? Come on, boo!" 

"Yeah. You've got a point. He'd be worse than the other two put together." 

OC remained silent. 

* * *

"... And I don't know how, but they traced me. And here I am." Logan finished, looking at the two men in front of him. 

He'd almost had a heart attack when Alec had come bursting through the door. And nearly did again when, after a curt nod from the X5, another guy had come in through the window. Knowing someone had been training a gun at him the whole time without him realizing it had done nothing to soothe his already raw nerves. 

"Er... Sorry, pal. But any one of us could have traced you. It's not that hard." The dark haired guy was telling him. 

He didn't like this one any more than he had ever liked Alec. Or any of the other X5s he had met so far. With the exception of Max, of course. And he wasn't even sure about that anymore. Every one of them was cocky, arrogant, sure of themselves, determined... This latest one had just come in with a gun held loosely in his hand and looked Logan straight in the eyes. _"So.. this is the great Eyes Only, huh?"_ He'd said, before walking out the front door. Logan had looked accusingly at Alec. _"Can't you even keep a secret?"_ Not that he was really surprised. Max's siblings had always been like that as well. _"He didn't need to tell me." _- Biggs had said, coming back in with two large bags in his hands- which had almost caused Logan to have another stroke- and closing the door behind him - _"I have eyes. And I've seen your eyes on TV enough times to recognize them"_

"Why here?" Alec's question brought him back to the present. 

"Not like I could go to Max's... or Joshua's." He answered, looking at Alec pointedly, not missing how his eyes narrowed at the mention of Max. "And I knew this place was empty, so..." 

"You thought your good friend Alec wouldn't mind you borrowing it, huh?" Alec asked, raising an eyebrow. 

"And, guess what? It's not empty anymore." Biggs announced cheerfully, looking at the bags he'd dropped on the floor. He didn't know what the deal was, but Alec was making no effort to hide his disdain towards this Logan fellow. And if Alec didn't like him, then Biggs felt no need to spare the guy's feelings. He'd never had that much respect for ordinaries anyway. "*I* am staying here," he said, "and so is Alec." He watched Logan's face turn into a mask of despair. He felt a little, tiny bit bad for the guy. He stole a glance at Alec's profile, but his friend remained impassive, just looking at the norm. "Don't you have like… friends or something?" he asked Logan. When he got no answer, he rolled his eyes. "Okay... What shall we do with you...?" 

He seemed to consider it for a moment. "Well... I guess you _could stay here... I mean, the floor doesn't seem all that hard.. and we could even lend you a blanket or something..." Alec had not interrupted him so far, so that meant he didn't mind what Biggs was saying. At least he hoped so. _

Logan had to swallow his pride, but all he could manage was a nod and a barely audible 'thanks'. He raised his head to look at Alec, but he appeared totally absorbed by something else on his mind. 

"So... Logan, is it? .. what is it you do when you are not saving the world?" Biggs asked, the amusement and sarcasm clear in his voice. 

"I ... well, I..." 

Biggs burst out laughing. 

Neither of them saw Alec move to the window and stare out, deep in thought. 

* * *

The young woman looked around with a critical eye. It was just as she had imagined it would be. 

Shadows were playing over the buildings, but failed to conceal the filth and degradation. A street lamp flickered a few feet away, the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance, and something scurried between a dumpster and one of the walls. 

She squared her shoulders and raised her chin. "You can come out now. I'm one of you." she said, eyes continuously inspecting her surroundings. 

A tall figure came out of the shadows, a shotgun trained at her. He tapped his neck with his left hand. She slowly raised her right hand and lifted her hair, tilting her head slightly to the side so that the light would illuminate her bar code, but careful that her eyes never left her interceptor. 

"Sorry, babe, but you still ain't one of us," said the tall guy, shaking his lizard looking head from side to side. He bit the cigar he was smoking and added, "I think you want to go a few blocks that way." He jerked his head in the general direction of an alley. 

"And _I_ think I want to go where I please." She answered impassively. "And tell the guy behind the big cardboard box to my right, the one crouching behind that... car, shall we call it? ... and the one on that window, they can come out too." 

Lizard-man looked at her for a moment and then raised his shotgun, letting the barrel rest on his shoulder. At a nod of his head, the sound of three different safeties being clicked on could be heard and three other weird looking transgenics stepped from the positions she had named. They approached her and proceeded to form a semicircle in front of her. 

Gray eyes took them in swiftly, professionally. She then looked up and said, "Next time, you want to place yourself on the other side of that pillar, you know? To make sure the barrel of your weapon doesn't catch any unwanted reflection from the light to your left?" 

A small guy with very white skin stood up from behind the small wall at the top of the building in front of her, smiling sheepishly. 

Lizard guy burst out laughing and pointed to the others as he was saying: "This is Dix, Lyon and Pete. And that one up there is Luke." He moved the shotgun to his left hand extended his right, "And I'm Mole." 

She took his hand. "Nicole." 

* * *

The atmosphere was dense with smoke and the pulse of the loud non-descript music that was ever-present at Crash. Max and OC were sitting at a small round table watching Sketchy who was playing pool and for once, actually winning. 

OC was wearing a flashy, impossible-to-miss golden outfit that brought out everything it was supposed to. Max was dressed in black, but her clothes were better and more suggestive than usual, plus she was wearing some make up and her hair was fastened loosely away from her face. She had enjoyed the feeling of dressing up, just for herself. 

"So, I was thinking, what you said earlier about Ralph... maybe I should stay there with her and Josh. You know, keep an eye on them," she said. 

"Oh?" OC turned to look at her. 

"Well, not that I'm crazy about not having you around or anything, but... maybe until we find a more permanent solution." 

"Yeah, of course." 

"Yes. And you know, Joshua is probably gonna like having me there." 

"Ya kiddin'? That'll be perfect, boo. Don't know why I didn't think o'that before!" OC said, shaking her head. 

She'd done her part. Now it was up to Alec to find excuses to go visit Ralph and Joshua all the time. At least it should be easier than finding excuses to go by OC and Max's place. It would be harder for Max to avoid him both at work _and_ at Joshua's. It was all she had been able to come up with. 

"Sorry to disrupt your plans, ladies, but I have a little problem with them." Alec's voice sounded playfully from behind their backs, and the corner of his mouth was slightly turned up. None of his inner torment was showing in his face, his body language or his voice. No one would have guessed he was dying inside. That seeing her there made him want to just reach out and hold her in his arms and kiss her until she forgot she was mad at him. Especially when he knew he could do that. But what about later? No. He needed her. He wanted her to want to be with him. But first he needed to be around her. And if he had to trick her into it, he'd do it. He'd evaluated his options and chosen a course of action. He would achieve that objective. And then he'd move on to the next. The main objective. To make her love him. 

He'd thought it all through. She had no way around it. But he had to play his cards carefully. 

Once again he thanked whatever being was up there for OC. She understood exactly how to deal with Max. And she'd made things so much easier for him. 

Max stiffened at the sound of his voice, but forced herself to relax. "Oh! So sorry." She said sarcastically. "And we should care about your problems, because...?" 

"Well, for starters, the reason I have a problem, is Logan. And since I probably would never have met Logan or be in this situation if it wasn't for you..." 

"Logan?" 

"Yeah. You see, White traced one of his E.O. broadcasts, and so he decided to move into my old apartment, where I was planning to live now... So, since for reasons you are no doubt familiar with," he looked at her and raised an eyebrow, "I _can't_ share a room with him for any prolonged amount of time... I have to move back to Joshua's." He finished, flashing her a bright smile. Max glared at him. "Or to OC's," he added. 

OC narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm sorry, suga'. I love you an' all, but I ain't livin' with no male!" She wasn't sure how he was going to play this, but if this was what he wanted, she'd add her part. Looking at Max she added, "Hey, look at the bright side, boo. Now you don't have to move all your stuff." 

Alec chuckled, looking at her with a wink. "Yeah, I thought so Cindy. And you know what? I'm sure Ralph would love having me around!" 

"Sorry to burst your bubble, jerk, but I'm not letting that happen." Max interrupted. 

*All right!* He kept his jubilation off his face. 

Max continued in a very self-righteous preaching tone. "You can't be trusted. Maybe Logan can stay with Ralph and Josh…" 

"No." He spoke over her. 

"…and you can go back to living with your buddy and..- What do you mean, 'no'?" She demanded defiantly. 

His tone carried a slight trace of mockery. "Of course I'm not going to stay there, Maxie, but not because you don't let me. It's for the same reason neither Logan or Biggs can, either." 

"Oh, yeah? And what's that?" She imitated his attitude. 

"Come on, Max! You should know better than anyone else." When she still didn't say a word he sighed. "Heat, Max. What if she goes into heat?" 

He watched her horrified expression as his words sunk in. 

"Yeah, I knew you'd get my point." 


	11. Positioning

A/N: Infie: there are no words.. You rock, hon!

A/N2: Thank you all for your reviews. They make my day. And yes, less than a week! I am shocked too, but don't expect this to happen very often ;)

**Tough Call**

**Positioning**

"So this is where the Xs stay?" Nicole asked as she entered a three-storied building. 

"Yep." Was all the answer she got from Mole. He didn't think she would mind. She was not much of a talker herself. 

After a quick look around she crossed the threshold, but stopped when she realized he wasn't following her. "You coming?" He shook his head. "Why not?" 

"We don't get along too well. Us freaks and the rest of them." 

She nodded. "That is going to have to change." She said matter-of-factly. "Come with me." 

Only after a couple of steps did he realize he had followed an order and he shook his head. 

She was good. 

* * *

"So, lil'fella will be staying here?" 

"That's what it looks like, Josh." Max gave him a faint smile. "At least for the time being." 

"This house perfect for lil'fella and Alec and littlest fella." He nodded seriously. "Father's house." 

Max squirmed under his intense gaze. "Yeah, we'll see." 

She sat down on the couch that would be her bed. Alec had said she could use his room, but she had refused. She didn't want to owe him anything. Besides, the thought of another night having to smell him every time she moved was painful. It was not something she wanted to experience again any time in the near future. 

* * *

As she entered the room, its three occupants were instantly awake. When they saw the tall woman in gray they scrambled to their feet and stood at attention in front of her. She just nodded. They knew she could have killed them all, had she wanted to. But she didn't need to say a thing. She didn't ask them to stand down, either. 

"X6-331, ma'am!" The boy said. 

"X6-129!" 

"X6-809!" Nicole looked at the last of the girls who spoke, a small brunette. She addressed them all, though. "Very well, what are your names?" When they remained silent, she added, "You have been taught how to blend in." 

"Yes, ma'am!" 

"So, what did you go by once outside of Manticore?" 

The kids looked nervously at each other. Her lack of expression was making them uneasy. 

"I once told some guy in a store my name was Joe." 

"And I said I was Elizabeth." 129 said, lowering her eyes, a blush covering her cheeks. "It was the only name I could remember, most of our instructors were male." 

Nicole just nodded and turned to look at 809. 

"I provided a new identity for myself yesterday, ma'am. From an old lady. I was thinking we could all use ID's." 

"Were you?" 

"Yes, ma'am. I am now Regina Winthorp." 

"Did you all escape together?" 

129 shook her head. "Only 331 and me." 

"I escaped with a group of X6s and an X8." 809 clarified. 

"Where are they now?" 

"They all died, ma'am." A strand of short brown hair fell across her eye. "We were ambushed by some men and... they killed them. I barely managed to escape." She finished defensively. 

"Are you sure they were all dead?" 

"They were all shot, ma'am. I don't think any of them could have survived." 

"Very well." Nicole turned to face the three of them again. "I am Nicole. And this," she said, walking to the door, "is Mole." 

She watched their startled and fearful expressions, and she thought she even detected a little disgust on one of the faces. But, they did their best to hide it. They were, after all, still at attention in front of a superior. She continued. "You will follow either my or Mole's instructions." 

"But he's a.. He's a.." 129 attempted. 

"A... what? A freak? No more than any of us." Nicole cut her off. "And he's not the one I found sleeping without at least a sentry to keep watch." The three kids looked straight ahead, their cheeks a little livelier than they'd been before. "So, since he's obviously more capable than anyone else I've seen so far, you'll answer to him. Is that understood?" 

"Yes, ma'am." The three voices said in unison. 

"Now go back to sleep and be at the building on the corner three hundred meters to the South-South-East at 0600 tomorrow." She and Mole turned to leave, but as she was about to cross the threshold she stopped and turned back to look at 129. "Three hour watches. You start." With that she left. 

* * *

Mole turned to look at the kids. Nicole had been right to reprimand them, of course, they had been lazy and it had been a serious breach of security on their part. And he felt very good that an X5 had put him above other Xs. Not that he thought he didn't deserve it, but he was happy for the recognition. Now he actually felt sorry for them, though. 

He thought of a small way to make at least one of them feel a little better, without undermining Nicole's authority. 

He knew he would regret this, but he approached 129 again. "You know what, kid?" He said. "We can call you Liz, or Beth. You know, so it will sound different. I really can't imagine that old bitch using a nickname. Can you?" He asked conspiratorially. He saw the light in the girl's eyes. As the girl suddenly jumped and hugged him, he growled, disgusted with himself, but didn't push her away. He waited until she let go, and then muttered something unintelligible under his breath and moved to follow Nicole. 

* * *

Alec watched them from the door. Somehow his perfectly thought out plan didn't seem so good any more. Yes, he had concentrated on accomplishing the first step. And he had succeeded. She was there. But it wasn't as appealing as he had thought it would be. She was obviously not happy about this. 

Well, he hadn't really expected her to be, right? 

After what he'd said, there hadn't been much room for discussion. Ralph could only stay either with Max or with OC. And since OC – bless her – had said she would not live with any guys, the solution had been obvious. Besides, as Cindy had pointed out, taking her cue from him, Max couldn't get into heat now. So she would be safe, she had nothing to fear. That of course had made Max accept the deal right away. She would never let anyone be under the impression she was afraid. 

Cindy had known that as well. That woman was something special, all right. The image of OC standing at her door after he had dropped Ralph at her place was still fresh in his memory. 

_"Good night, Cindy. And thanks... for everything." _

_"Not a problem, boo." _

But as he had turned to leave, her words had stopped him. 

_"Just a minute, Alec."_ She had looked at him, completely serious. _"I didn't do all this just for you. I did cause I can see how you feel about her. But mostly, cause I think you'll be good for her. But you damn well better make 'er happy, cause otherwise OC'll come down and make you pay, boy. Manticore super soldier or not, you don't wanna mess with me." _

She had hugged him after he'd promised he would. But he knew she had meant every word. 

The worst part was, he wasn't so sure any more if he would be able to keep that promise. 

* * *

The old man tapped his fingers on the desk. 

It was getting closer. The date. And they still weren't ready. 

So much was hinging on what Nicole could find. 

Why hadn't she called yet? 

* * *

Max looked up at him the minute she sensed his eyes leaving her. She wasn't sure exactly when he'd come back, but at some point she had become aware of his presence. She had just not wanted to acknowledge it. 

She watched him raise a hand to rub the back of his neck and shake his head from side to side. She had seen him wince a couple of times tonight, when he thought no one was looking at him. And she remembered Biggs' face that morning. That must have been some 'little argument' they'd had. X5s did not bruise that easily. But she refused to let herself care. Stupid male egos. They probably thought they had to fight over her. Like she had no say in the matter! 

She knew she wasn't being fair. Men were men... they solved their things in their own ways. It was pointless to try and understand how their minds worked. 

But what about her? Had any of them stopped to think about her? How she was feeling? 

For a few hours she had thought there was something there. Something between her and Alec. And then, everything had gone down the drain. First, seeing Biggs there had been quite a shock. Then, she'd realized he was Alec's friend. And as if that hadn't been enough, the things they'd said had cut her to the quick. Maybe they had not meant every word, but thinking with a clear head, two things were undeniable. Alec had known her baby was Biggs', and he had known his friend was not going to come back. He'd probably decided he'd take care of her and his friend's baby. That was not a bad thing. She could understand it. She would have done the same thing had she been in his shoes. At least, she would have tried to, she'd always had a hard time committing herself to things, to people. But he had deceived her. He had shut her out. He had made his choice, yes, but he'd also made the choice for her. She had a right to know everything. She had a right to know who the father of her child was. She had a right to decide if she wanted to tell him or not. Why hadn't Alec let her? 

"Max." His soft voice startled her. Joshua was nowhere to be seen. Alec was standing not four feet away from her, his hands shoved in the pockets of his jacket, his eyes intent on her. After a quick glance at him, she moved to the window and looked out at the rain, her arms crossed over her chest. "Max, will you please listen to me?" 

His voice was so deep and compelling. She had to fight the urge to move closer to him, just to be caressed by that soft texture. She did what she knew best. 

"Well, you made the necessary arrangements so I have no other choice, didn't you?" She asked without looking at him. 

"You think I planned White tracing Logan and him moving into my apartment?" 

"No, Alec, I know you didn't." She turned to face him. "But you sure as hell didn't waste any time planning around that." 

Alec sighed. "If that was what you thought I did, why did you agree?" He asked, searching her face. 

She answered honestly. "Cause I couldn't think of a better solution at the time, and frankly, I don't care." When Alec remained silent, just looking at her, she asked coldly, "Did you have something to say? Cause otherwise, I'd appreciate it if you left." 

"No, er.. yes. I have something to tell you." He took a deep breath. "I know you are not too happy with me right now," he raised his hands at her disbelieving expression, "and you are completely entitled to feel that way." 

"Gee, Alec, thanks for your permission!" 

He cursed himself silently. "Look, Max, I want to tell you how things were. And I'm not doing this to justify myself or cause I think it'll make you change your mind. I just need you to know. There's been enough not said between us." He paused. "Especially on my part." 

Damn him. Did he read minds? 

He looked down, but continued. "When I got back from Salem I went to work and you weren't there. As I was leaving I ran into Biggs. He told me what had happened." He swallowed, still not looking at her. "Anyway… A couple of days later I went to see you. When I got there, I realized you were pregnant. The first thing I thought, of course, was that I had to tell Biggs. But he had seen the way I had taken what he told me and he had promised he would leave and not come back. So..-" 

"How?" She interrupted. 

"Huh?" 

"You said Biggs saw how you had taken his words. How did you take it?" 

"Er... not too well..." 

"Why?" She watched him shift his feet uncomfortably and bite his lip. "I thought you wanted to be honest." 

"I did. I do." He ran his hand through his hair. "I was not entirely sure myself why back then. But the thought of you and him... The thought of you two... I just couldn't... I _can't _ handle it, all right?" He finished exasperated and then winced. "Sorry, didn't mean to shout at you." 

She just nodded. He had managed to render her speechless. 

He went to the small cabinet, poured himself a glass of scotch and took a sip before realizing what he'd done. He put the glass back down. "So... I'd like to say I immediately thought of taking care of you myself, but I didn't. First I thought of Logan. Then, I realized **I** wanted to look after your baby. I'm not going to say taking care of my friend's child didn't cross my mind. I'd be lying. But I also saw you, with a little tiny form in your arms and I just..." he shrugged his shoulders, "Maybe it was a sum of different things. But whatever the reasons, I feel that this baby is mine too. And no matter what you decide, I will always feel that way. It's a part of me now." 

Max felt a knot at the pit of her stomach. His words were getting to her even when she tried to dismiss them. But she could not doubt the sincerity in his voice, in those serious hazel eyes looking at her. But she couldn't let him sway her. Okay, so he felt that way about their – HER – baby, so what? That didn't change the big issue here, did it? 

* * *

Biggs looked at the man sitting on the chair. He looked completely lost and small, all alone there in the middle of the room. It was really depressing. 

"So what do you have there?" He asked, looking at the disks and the computer. He was totally bored. Alec had left earlier, said he was going to a bar, where he would probably meet Max, so naturally Biggs decided to stay in. The last thing Alec needed was him around. But there was really only so much a guy could do alone in an apartment with this guy. He'd never been more bored in his entire life. Not even in Manticore. He'd done a training session, eaten two and a half of the three pizzas he'd ordered – he had left one for Logan, but the norm had only eaten half of it, so naturally Biggs had finished the rest. He had also watched some TV, but the 29'' one didn't suit him. He had made a mental note to score himself a larger one. This was not living! 

Logan looked up at him and answered. "Some of my most important research. Sources, contacts... And all the info I had on Manticore." 

"Really?" That sounded almost interesting. He had made fun of the guy earlier, but he was pretty good at his stuff... for an ordinary. "Mind if I take a look?" He said, grabbing the disks without waiting for Logan's permission. 

"Er.. I guess not." Biggs hid his smile at the obvious disapproval in Logan's face. "But there isn't much you'll be able to see without the rest of the equipment." 

"You don't say!" Biggs' faked shock only made Logan go back to his previous deep-in-thought pose. The X5 moved to the door, the disks and what was left of the computer still in his hands. He laughed at the human. "Be back in a bit, honey. Don't miss me!" 

* * *

"Fenos 'tol" White said to the short haired woman standing in front of the window. It looked out onto the ocean. 

"Fenos 'tol" She answered without looking at him. . "The destruction of the Eyes Only operation was very good," he was about to smirk smugly when she continued, "however, the committee is not very pleased with your work so far, Ames." He didn't answer, but a muscle started to twitch in his jaw. "You've shown no real progress." 

He remained outwardly impassive. "I will. Soon." 

"Oh?" 

"Yes. I have something in the works." 

"It better be good, Ames." 

"It will be." 

"Very well." The woman said, and before turning away: "Fenos 'tol" 

He mumbled something similar in response. 

After she left, he grabbed an ashtray from the nearby table and crushed it in his hand, shattering it into a thousand little pieces of glass. He didn't even see the blood, and he felt no pain. His eyes were focused on some point outside the window. 

He'd get 452. And he'd make her pay. 

* * *

Alec watched her reaction to his words. He could tell she believed him, that she believed he loved that child. Their child. He could not think of it any other way. 

But he also saw her anger. He still owed her some explanations. And, he was going to give them to her. Even if it tore at him, even if it was against everything they had taught him, against everything he had taught _himself. _

"As to why I didn't tell you about Biggs... I'm not sure, myself. I guess I was still a little shocked and... he's really important to me. He was my only friend, and the thought of never seeing him again... it made it difficult for me to even think about him, cause every time I did, I felt this void inside me." Damn! This expressing his feelings thing was hard! He forced himself to continue. He stood even straighter, his hands laced at his back, unconsciously falling back into his debriefing demeanor and voice. It made things much easier for him. "And there was also the guilt." 

"The guilt?" Max whispered, opening her mouth for the first time in a long while. 

"Yes. Guilt. Because it was my fault he had gone away. And even more guilt because I .. I wanted him to stay away." 

"Why?" She demanded, but so softly and shakily that it shook him out of his debrief mode. 

He looked directly into her eyes, then decided to go all the way. "Because I couldn't bear the idea of seeing the two of you together. Because the mere thought that you would want to be with him made me ache." When she mouthed a silent 'why', he grabbed her hands. "Because I..." This was it. He had to tell her. "I..-" He looked down at their joined hands. Suddenly all thoughts were forgotten. His tone changed and so did his stance. His eyes darkened. "Max, what the hell is that?" 

He raised her hand, palm up, to show her the little dark symbols that were appearing on the skin of her wrist. 

* * *


	12. Questions

A/N: And.. [;-)] .. this is dedicated to Infie, who was, as usual the one who made it better. Thank you all for reading. (if someone still is) 

Tough Call

**Questions **

Max was sitting on a stool – the same one she had sat on yesterday morning, although it seemed like it had been ages ago – looking out the window at the first signs of dawn. The diffuse light coming through it only provided an even more eerie look to her profile. She was running her hands absently up and down her arms, as if that could somehow chase away the coldness that had claimed her ever since last night, ever since she'd seen those little scribbles appearing on her wrist. 

Actually she had been in shock even before that. All the more reason to be annoyed at the stupid things! 

'Cause that was how she felt. Annoyed. She was not afraid. Okay, so maybe she had been a little spooked at first. But she refused to let some odd symbols scare her. Whatever they were, she could deal with it. 

A lot more of them had popped up after the initial ones. On her shoulders, her back... Alec had said they looked like some ancient language, which had reminded her of the book she'd seen at that creepy school. The symbols looked very similar to what was in the book. Neither one of them had liked the idea of her having anything to do with that cult. 

She could still see Alec's intent face, his look of concentration, the way his eyes shifted as he thought; the complete stillness, followed by phases of furious pacing, until finally he had stopped and said he had to do something. He had asked her to go with him, saying she'd probably feel safer if she wasn't alone. And of course, she had said no, she was not afraid. He had been insistent, but she had remained adamant, until he had finally given up. He made her promise she wouldn't leave until he came back. 

She cursed her own stubbornness now. She felt so completely useless sitting here doing nothing. She had slept for a while, but now she was wide awake. She couldn't prevent her mind from wandering back to those little symbols. She couldn't stop the other thoughts either. 

The thoughts of him. 

* * *

Alec drummed his fingers impatiently, waiting for the page to load. 

He hated computers. He'd always been more of a man of action. Tension, adrenaline, strength... those he could deal with, actually loved dealing with. Or, mental activity. That was fine by him as well. His mind could follow several different paths and analyze separate possibilities at the same time. It was one of the reasons he hated computers so much. He had to wait for stuff. He couldn't just move on. 

He glanced at the clock again. Still thirty minutes until he could wake Biggs up. Shit. 

He pressed some more keys, looking at other screens. But what he really needed was, of course, in the page that wouldn't load. He cursed the hardware and its owner. So what if he was trying to access one of the largest – and oldest – databases in the world? It should work faster! 

He had come here after paying a little visit to Logan. He smiled scornfully as he remembered Logan's face when he had been awakened in the middle of the night. It wasn't like he had done it on purpose, but he needed some information from Eyes Only. Alec shook his head at the amount of wasted time it had taken to convince Cale to get him the info. Logan finally told him that he couldn't get it, cause it was in his computer and Biggs had taken it with him. Alec had left in the middle of Logan's rant about the disregard for private property all transgenics had. 

He had been really happy to hear the news about Biggs, though. He had known immediately where the other X5 would be, at the hacker's, the one Alec had informed him about. Since it had been Alec's next destination anyway, he'd gone there smiling. Biggs loved computers. One of those things Alec would never understand. They'd had the same lessons, they'd both excelled in the use of the darned devices, but Biggs had somehow developed this... unnatural connection with them. His friend had always denied it, but Alec was convinced there must have been some impossible to resist goddess teaching computers while he was 'away' for one of his stays at Psy-ops. It was the only logical explanation for what he considered a completely irrational behavior of his otherwise perfectly normal friend. 

Everything had been okay at first. He'd had Biggs look for the information for him while he tried to figure out what the hell was going on. But Biggs needed his sleep. From what he had told Alec, he had been driving all night the night before. 

Alec had considered many possibilities. Even the most absurd ones. He'd been completely thorough. He twisted his lips and shook his head at the ideas that had crossed his mind. 

He'd even considered the baby. But one thing that was evident to him was that the timing was important. The runes had showed up all of a sudden and not gradually over a period of several days. And that would have implied she _had to get pregnant at this specific time. And even if her heat could have been foreseen, there was no way to assure she would get pregnant. It was true what he'd told OC about X5s breeding rate. But she could have been with an X5 before this heat, when she had escaped. Or even when she'd been paired with him at Manticore. Or she could have spent her heat with a human – which made the pregnancy less likely – or, even more probably, she could have been with no one, as had been her intention. It had taken him leaving town, his friend coming to look for him, and Sketchy telling him to go to her place at exactly that very night to get her into this situation. Since he refused to believe in a cosmic conspiracy, the only other choice was what had likely happened. It had all been a sum of coincidences and bad timing. And he sincerely doubted the cult loonies – or whoever was behind this – would leave this much up to chance, he had discarded that possible cause. Along with many others. _

The runes could be a result of that snake ceremony she'd been forced to participate in. She had been exposed to that poison or whatever, and there was no doubt that it was related to the cult. But that had been weeks ago. Why appear now? And as far as he knew, the Familiars didn't have any scribbles. At least, he had not seen any on White. On the other hand, the guy was always in suits, which made it hard to tell. But the guys at the museum hadn't had any either. It could be that it was a reaction to Max's DNA and that was why the others didn't have it. But he was not convinced. Again, the timing was a problem. And there were too many coincidences. 

The only other possibility he had been able to come up with that remotely made sense was that it was a message encoded in all that 'junk DNA' that was not junk at all. In this case, the time of their appearance could have easily been encoded as well, leaving nothing to chance. And that would mean it was a message from Dr. Sandeman. The medallion he'd given Joshua matched Max's scar, which linked the good doctor with the snake-blood loving loonies. The question that remained, however, was still: Was Dr. Sandeman one of the good guys? 

Okay… there were more questions. Why had the runes appeared now? What was the message? That was what Alec was working on right now. Or at least trying to, if only the stupid page would ever load. 

He needed to keep his mind busy. Otherwise it would go back to the other thoughts he had been trying to keep at bay all night by wrestling with the reason behind the creepy apparitions: His unfinished conversation with Max. 

* * *

"I saw what you did with that kid yesterday." Nicole said as she approached Mole. 

"So?" He looked up from the gun he had been cleaning and scowled at her. "She was just embarrassed because Elizabeth was Renfro's first name." 

"I know." She answered. "And it was very well done on your part. You'll make a very good second. Winning the troops is always important." 

"If you knew about the name, why didn't you say something? Wouldn't it be more important that _you_ won their confidence? You _are_ the leader after all." 

"Not for long." She said and turned towards the main hall again. "See you at the meeting." With that she left, leaving a very puzzled Mole staring at her back. 

* * *

Had he been on the brink of telling her what she thought he was? Could he have been about to say he...loved her? It had definitely been something important. His entire body had told her as much. But...that? It sure had looked that way. She could still feel the tightening of the muscles in her stomach and chest every time she remembered that moment. In fact, when ever she remembered any bit of that conversation. What else could he have wanted to say? 

She shook her head forcefully. She was not going to do it again. She would not put words in his mouth. She was not going to let herself imagine there was more to the words he had said. 

He loved the baby. That much was real. He had said it. She had not imagined that part. 

But her? That was just her restless imagination. 

True, he had said he couldn't handle the thought of her and Biggs together. But that didn't imply he loved her. It meant he was jealous, she didn't doubt that. He had even raised his voice at her. Alec _never_ raised his voice, not while talking. He always seemed detached, like he didn't care enough to shout. But he had. She wasn't sure which had surprised her more, that he had yelled or what he had said. 

She was getting off track again. She needed to think this through. She didn't want to jump into conclusions. Not again. 

Okay, so he had been jealous. Fine. But that didn't necessarily mean he loved her. You could be jealous when you wanted someone. Right? 

This thinking things through wasn't helping, either. Her last line of logic implied he wanted her. Badly. And that he had felt that way for some time. She groaned out loud. No, not helping at all. 

She took a deep breath. Next subject, any other subject. Lies! What about his lying? Okay, maybe more hiding the truth than lying, but anyway. Except, now she could see why he had. Even though she didn't forgive him, she could understand. 

She couldn't forget the expression on his face as he was talking to her. She could still see how hard it had been for him to talk about it. She could relate to his reluctance to speak. Damn him. 

She stood and started pacing up and down the room. In the end it all came back down to the words he hadn't said. 

She stopped to glare at her wrists! Stupid things. 

* * *

He ran a hand through his hair. It had not been easy. He had had to use all his resolve to talk to her, to try to explain things to her. Then, they were interrupted. 

He hoped Max had understood what he had been trying to tell her. He knew she had believed him. He just wasn't sure if he had been clear enough. He had not planned on telling her it all. At least, not at first. But then, he just knew he had to. She deserved his honesty, and he had needed to tell her. Everything. 

But those stupid things had come to interrupt him in the middle of it. He was sure Max would find a way to rationalize things and just interpret it all in some twisted way. 

Stupid runes! He kicked an empty CD case that was lying on the floor, which made a barely audible clank as it hit the edge of the desk. The noise was, however, loud enough to cause Biggs to jump out of his chair, his eyes alert, his gun already cocked and in his hand. Alec remained still, knowing his friend wouldn't shoot him. 

After a quick glance around, Biggs lowered his gun and glared at him. 

Alec gave him an apologetic glance and murmured a "Sorry, buddy." 

"Yeah, right!" Biggs answered. "So... Did you have a good time all alone with this beauty?" He asked, raising a sardonic eyebrow. 

It was Alec's turn to glare. "Stupid thing has been refusing to load." 

"That is cause you don't treat her with love, my friend." He made a dismissive movement with his hand to make him get up, and then ceremoniously sat himself down in front of the screen and started hitting keys. 

Alec rolled his eyes at him. "Did you find anything on Logan's comp?" 

"He has a bunch of stuff on Manticore. And I mean a lot. I'll go through it more carefully. And about the other stuff, yes, I think I might have." 

"Good. Think you can take care of it?" 

Biggs just nodded. "No problem. I'll get on it as soon as I finish this." 

"Great." Alec started pacing again. Biggs continued to work on the computer in silence for a while, until Alec's voice interrupted him again. To his credit, he didn't even flinch this time. He was used to Alec's sudden ideas. "You should take Ralph with you." 

Okay, maybe he had been a little out of touch with his friend lately. "What?" 

"She might make it easier for you." Alec shrugged, "And that way you can keep an eye on her." 

"Still don't trust her?" 

"Not so much that I don't trust her, but until I can talk to her and get some more answers, I'd rather you keep an eye on her." He looked at Biggs. "Besides, wouldn't that make you feel better too?" 

Biggs had to smile. Alec did know him. "Yes," he said with mock defiance. "You got a problem with that?" 

Alec smiled back and shook his head. "No. Actually, I feel the same way." He turned serious again. "I have to go to work today. Missed a lot of days so far. But I'll tell Normal you were settling in or whatever." He looked at the computers. "I really need to work on this." He shoved his hands on his pockets, frustrated. 

Biggs eyed him over his shoulder. "I'll get someone to watch over Max." 

Alec stopped biting his lip and turned to look at him. 

His nod told Biggs that was exactly what had been on Alec's mind like no words could have. He turned back to the computer and gave it a loving, "Come on, sweetheart, you know you want to load". The screen suddenly came up and he shot Alec a cocky grin. 

Alec just growled and left. 

* * *

"So, is everything understood?" 

"Yes, ma'am!" 

"Very well, you may all go to your posts." Nicole looked around at the group of X6s "You, stay." The kids looked at her apprehensively. "I trust what happened last night will not happen again." 

"No, ma'am." Joe –331- said. 

Nicole nodded. "Do you see how this is organized? Everyone has their assignments. I know you didn't do very much except training at Manticore, but you will have to learn to cooperate here." The kids nodded vigorously. 

Mole had to smile at their eager expressions. Poor kids! 

"Uh, sir! Er.. ma'am!" Dix said, looking at the screens that were placed on a balcony above the main room. Nicole glanced up, and then nodded to Mole, who immediately left, followed by Lyon and another guy whose face very much resembled that of a rat. She walked up the stairs motioning for the kids to follow her. 

"Come learn. Dix just spotted someone coming in through one of the passages. There are cameras installed in the most obvious entrances." She didn't turn to see if they were paying attention. She knew they were. "As you can see, the person coming in is an X5." Noting Dix's curious expression, and knowing the kids would have similar ones on their faces, she clarified: "Notice how he looks around, he's assessing his surroundings. And look at his hands. Did you notice how they were loose at his sides? He had them ready to reach for the gun behind his back at first. But he knows he's being watched. So now his palms are slightly turned up, to show he does not mean to use it. But, they are not raised to show surrender. He is definitely X5." The others watched the screen, fascinated. "He already identified everyone's position. He's waiting for Mole to come up." 

They watched Mole point his weapon at the guy's face and the X5's initial surprise at the lizard-face and then his smile. 

"How does he know they won't kill him?" 129 asked. 

"Why would they?" Nicole asked in return. "And besides, he knows they won't shoot, to avoid attracting too much attention, and he figures he can take them." 

"He can?" 

"He could. Maybe. Some X5s are really good on hand to hand. I don't know this one. So far." She said as she turned around to watch them all enter downstairs. 

* * *

Biggs looked around the room and nodded approvingly. A little bit of untidiness, but they looked like they knew what they were doing. He could see a pretty good supply of weapons arranged on shelves on one of the corners, a table in the middle of the room, and a set of doors. One of them appeared to lead to a bathroom, and another to what he assumed would be an office. There were people hovering all around the room, but everybody appeared to have a specific chore. He wished he was looking at another X5. Sure, everyone looked efficient enough, but he really could not use any of them. Not for what he had in mind. 

There was an iron stairway that led to a balcony. He could hear people moving on it. He walked into the center of the room and looked up. He saw another transhuman, three kids – X6s by the look of them – and a young woman looking down at him. He smiled at the woman with the gray hair and frowned when she didn't smile back. What the hell was the matter lately? He had been glared at by three – THREE – females in the past two days. Something was seriously wrong. He shook his head sadly, but moved right along. "511." He said by way of introduction. "Biggs." 

"Nicole." The woman said. She looked at him for a moment and then back at the kids, signaling for them to go downstairs. 

As they reached him, the kids immediately stood at attention. Nicole looked at them pointedly. They started speaking. 

"X6-129!" 

"X6-809!" 

"X6-331!" 

Biggs looked at the second girl. 809? Wasn't that ...? His train of thought was interrupted by Nicole's voice. 

"Go get to what you have to do." 

"Yes, ma'am." 

As the kids left, she turned to look at him. "What can we do for you?" 

Biggs reluctantly took his eyes from the girl that was leaving and looked at Nicole. "Is that... Did she come here recently? Did she mentioned anything happening to her on the way here?" 

"I don't know when she got here, I already put Dix over there on the task of finding out. But yes. She said she was with three other X6s and an X8. That the rest of them died in some kind of ambush." 

Biggs smiled. "Ralph is going to love hearing about this." He lowered his voice. "That's one of the kids that escaped with her. But don't tell her anything, okay? I want to surprise them both." 

"I wasn't planning on telling her anything." 

Biggs blinked and stopped smiling. "Right." Definitely NOT his day with the ladies. When he talked again, his voice was all business. "Are there any other X5s around here?" 

"Not that I have seen so far." 

"Fine. You'll have to do. I see you are the one running things here, is there anyone you can leave in charge?" When she nodded, he added, "Good, do it and then come with me." She stayed in place, looking at him, her expression blank. "Do you have a problem with that, soldier?" 

"I need something more than that to leave my post. Keep talking." 

Biggs relaxed. She was right. He had no authority over her. "I'm working with some other transgenics. There is a mission and you are the only one here that fits the profile." He paused. "It's all I can tell you right now. Your call." 

She remained silent for a couple of minutes and then turned away. "Any equipment required?" 

He smiled brightly. "Just standard parameters." 

"I'll be outside in thirteen minutes." 

He nodded and watched her approach the lizard guy that had greeted him, tell him something and then walk towards the office. After one last glance around the room, he went outside to wait for her. 

* * *

Nicole took out her cell phone and, after checking that no one was around, dialed. 

"Good morning, sir." She started. "Yes sir. I am in position ... No sir, no word on her yet. But I am getting things organized ... I know she is our priority, sir, but I understood we had agreed getting things organized was a very important step as well. ... Don't worry, sir. I am not forgetting that. I've already made contact with the X5 you spotted ... Yessir, I'm sure. He fits your description and he mentioned the girl. ... Yes, sir. Have a good day, sir." 

Her eyes were a very cold gray when she ended the communication. Not that her expression had changed in any way. She always looked the same. She remained still for a few more seconds, staring at the phone in her hand. 

* * *

"Yes." White said as he answered his cell phone. No one on the command center paid attention to the fact that he didn't use his usual curt 'White'. Or for that matter, that it was a different phone. They were all very busy. 

"Fenos 'tol." He whispered, too soft for anyone else to hear. 

He listened for a while and then hung up, a big, scary looking grin on his lips. He was sure this girl would prove to be very useful. 


	13. Guarded

A/N: Thank you Infie for the beta-ing and title (as usual). And thanks to all for reading. (I really don't mind reviews ;) ). 

Tough Call

**Guarded**

"This will just be a minute." Biggs told her as he stepped out of his sports car, the same one he had driven to Seattle. He had initially planned to ditch it today. The slight change of plans and his oncoming assignment had made him decide to keep it for another day. 

His eyes swept his surroundings professionally, taking in the fence, the abandoned cars, the decrepit construction. He watched Nicole do the same and mentally nodded his appreciation. She would do. At least for the time being. 

"Aw, so nice of you to walk me in!" He tossed at her sarcastically when she followed him into the building. She just nodded. *Oh, the fun!* Well, at least he was not the one that had to be stuck with her for company. He smirked slightly. 

He eyed the bare walls as they climbed the steps three at a time. The place was as bad on the inside as it looked on the outside. He frowned as he approached the front door, trying to put the thoughts of why he had never seen this side of the building before aside. 

He knocked and took a step back. His mind registered the fact that Nicole had positioned herself two steps behind and to his left, where he wouldn't be blocking her view of – and more importantly, a potential clear shot at – the person that came to open the door. He changed his weight to his other leg and had to suppress an appreciative grin as she moved, almost imperceptibly, to adjust to his new position. Oh, yeah, she would definitely do. 

He heard the soft padding of bare feet on the other side of the door. He braced himself for the frowning face he knew was going to be his 'welcome'. 

"What do _you_ want here?" She didn't disappoint him. 

"Good morning to you too." He answered. She refused to back down or feel bad in any way. He hadn't expected her to. "I need to see Ralph." 

"And I need a nice, long soak in a Jacuzzi. Doesn't mean I'm gettin' one." 

He forced himself to remain calm. " Alec explained to me what is going on. I understand how you feel about me. I know I can't change that, I'm sorry. I'm also not going to go away and we are going to work together. Can we at least try to be civil?" He looked at her, trying to tone down his natural arrogance. He hoped he had succeeded, at least a little bit. 

"And why should we?" 

"Look, it's not like I meant for things to be this way." He was about to lose it again. The woman was impossible. 

"No." She looked at him out of disdainful eyes. "You just couldn't keep it in your pants, that's all." 

"Well, yeah. That pretty much sums it up." He shrugged. 

"Ugh! You are such a pig!" 

He cursed under his breath, before turning cold eyes Nicole's direction. "There's an X6 in that room over there," - he remembered that room really well – "could you please wake her up and tell her I need her to come with me?" When he saw she was about to ask something, he added: "Trip out of town. She'll be back today." Nicole nodded and went past OC towards the bedroom door. A small part of his mind deviated into wishing all women were soldiers. At least you knew what to expect from them. Well, most of the time. 

He grabbed OC's arm, gently but firmly, and drew her into the corridor outside. He closed the door and silently counted to ten before starting to speak in a soft voice he knew even Nicole's X5 hearing wouldn't be able to catch. 

"You ever seen how male cats act when there's a female in heat around?" he continued without waiting for an answer. "Well, us X5 males all have feline DNA. Some of us more, some of us less, but we all have some." He watched her eyes grow wide. "I'm not saying we are animals. We are not. We _could eventually control it. It takes a lot of will power, but we can." OC squirmed a little. "I should have. But I'd been told they weren't together and I.." he shrugged, "I just didn't fight it. You want me to say I'm sorry? Fine. I'll say it. Again. But it doesn't change a thing." His eyes became even colder. "You think I enjoy knowing I'm the cause of all this mess? I don't." His eyes bore into hers. "You are mad at me cause I hurt your friends. How do you think *I* feel about it? Alec is not just my friend, he's my only friend." The anger was barely concealed in his voice, anger at himself. "So you want to be mad at me? Fine. Just make sure Alec doesn't see it, or hear about it. The last thing he needs is to be worrying about us not getting along." With that, he turned and walked back into the apartment, leaving a stunned OC staring after him. _

He had no idea how scary he had looked. Or how he had seemed to get taller as he spoke. Or how much that vacant look in his eyes had reminded OC of Alec. 

Max watched Alec pacing up and down the back entrance of Jam Pony. He kept glancing at his watch over and over again. 

He had come to pick her up earlier this morning. It had been a little awkward at first, but he had seemed preoccupied with other things. He had filled her in on his thoughts on the whole mysterious symbols and then talked a little with Joshua, who had immediately agreed they must be a message from Father. Of course, Joshua had no doubt Sandeman was one of the good guys. Alec hadn't seemed convinced. 

Max had been torn. On one side, she really wanted to trust Joshua's instincts. On the other, however, she could understand Alec's caution. They had both been trained not to trust anyone, not to take anything at face value. 

He raised his eyes and briefly smiled at her. A fleeting smile, meant to reassure her. It only made her feel more uneasy. The fact that he thought he needed to provide comfort made her all the more ill at ease. 

She watched him suddenly nod before he signaled for her to join him. They both stepped out together and went to meet a group of people getting out of a black sports car. 

She watched, amazed at how Alec's demeanor changed. He became his usual charming playful self, his eyes sparkling with barely concealed laughter, the lips almost begging to curve into his trademark smirk, his shoulders loose. She shook her head. How had she never seen it before? The big 'transformation'. And the funny part was that she could tell it wasn't an act. He was still worried, she could recognize that behind the mirth in his eyes. But the smart aleck, happy person was also there. When she had started to see the darker side of him, she had thought of the carefree-guy-mask as a defense mechanism. She still thought it was on some level. But it was also a part of his personality. He was just like that. It was a remarkable gift, that ability to make others feel better, without letting them see what was going on inside him. 

She suddenly realized he hadn't done that when it was just her. He had not felt the need to hide his worry from her. What did that mean? 

The sound of the happy voices around distracted her from her deliberations. She automatically smiled too as she saw Cindy come to greet her. 

"Hey, girl! Miss ya already!" she said. 

OC smiled. "Yeah, me too. Even when this little baby Manticorean been keeping Original Cindy company." she said, looking at Ralph, who smiled timidly in return. 

Max's smile grew brighter. "Ralph!" She approached the blonde, seeing her uncertain glance. "I am so sorry I didn't see you yesterday! I had a… weird day, you know? But I am really happy to see you." The younger girl hesitated, then appeared to make a decision and hugged Max back. 

"Yeah. It's good to see you too." 

Max was about to ask her about the others when she saw Alec shake his head behind Ralph's back. Her eyebrows drew together, but she didn't say anything. 

They all turned as they heard the sound of the trunk of the car being closed, to watch Biggs and a gray haired woman walk around it. She had a small bag in her hands. 

"Well, _hello_..." Alec drawled, shooting the woman an appreciative once over. She was a hottie. 

"Exactly my reaction, suga'," OC mumbled playfully, which earned her a beaming grin. 

The woman in question remained standing still, her eyes fixed on Alec. She looked deadly serious. 

Biggs walked around her. "Guys, this is Nicole. Nicole, this is Max, and this is..-" 

"494." She finished for him. 

"I go by Alec now." He frowned a little, shaking her hand. "Do we know each other?" 

"No." She said, her eyes not betraying any emotion. Who the hell was this woman? Suddenly she turned to Max and extended her hand. "Nicole." She said. 

"Max. Are you X5?" 

"I am." 

"Oh." Max looked at Alec, without knowing what else to say. He shrugged. 

"Listen, Ralph, why don't you go wait for me in the car? I'll be right with you." Biggs broke the awkward silence. Ralph didn't seem to like the idea too much, but she obeyed. 

"I'll go on inside." OC supplied, before walking in. 

"Has Biggs told you what we need?" Alec asked. She shook her head. "Have you ever been in the field?" 

"Yes." 

Seeing she didn't seem about to give any more information, he asked, "What was your specialty?" 

"S&P." He exchanged a fleeting look with Biggs, who just raised his shoulders but mouthed '_She is a real pro'._ Alec mentally raised an eyebrow. That good, huh? It was the highest compliment Biggs could give anyone. "I'm also very good with electronics and computers. I am a hand to hand expert, too." 

"All right, Nicole. Max here has suddenly become very important. And I mean very, very important." 

"I understand." 

Alec watched Max's confused look. Oh, yeah, she was going to kick his ass for this one. 

"Can you do it?" 

"Yes." was the woman's only answer. Her eyes never left his and he studied them for a few seconds. 

"Very well. She works as a messenger here, which means she's on the street all day. We are going to have to get you a job here as well." He stopped, rolling his shoulders. "Give me a second and I'll come up with something to tell the boss..." 

"Which one is he?" Nicole asked. 

"Huh? Blond guy with the spectacles and the pencil behind his ear." 

"I'll handle it." she said, and walked inside. 

They all followed her with their eyes. Max suddenly remembered where her voice was. "All right, what the hell is going on? What is it you want her to do? And how the hell did she understand so quickly? You didn't say anything!" 

"I said it was you." Alec declared with a sheepish smile. When she glared at him, he sighed. "Remember what she said her specialty was?" 

"Yeah, hand to hand, and computers. Oh, and some S&B or whatever." She answered. 

"S&P, Max." Alec corrected her. "As in Security and Protection." He took a deep breath before continuing. "She's a bodyguard, Max." 

"A… _what_?" Biggs smiled as he remembered how the much smaller woman had tried to physically threaten his friend, who had been looking anywhere but at her. She had then stomped inside. They had looked at each other and burst out laughing. The look on her face had been priceless. 

Still, they had immediately turned serious, as more pressing matters overtook their thoughts. 

Alec had looked at him questioningly. 

"Yep, news to me too." He had answered honestly. "She was the only X5. You want me to see if I can find someone else?" 

"No. It's okay." Biggs had raised an eyebrow at him. Alec had clarified, "There is something off about her. But she was assigned a mission. She will carry it out." Biggs had immediately understood. Whatever she was, she was definitely a soldier. It was one thing they both knew how to recognize. 

So he was now on his way out of town again. When they had all escaped from Manticore, he had pictured himself in a convertible, driving along deserted roads. Yet, somehow, it being constantly in and out of the same city had never been part of his daydreams. Traveling with a kid had never been a part of it either. Sure, she was beautiful, but she was also just a child. 

They drove for at least three hours before they pulled into a dirt road that went up the mountains. Good thing he had no intention of keeping the car. He had a feeling the suspension was never going to be the same. 

"Where are we going?" Ralph finally asked. She had been chatting the whole trip. Telling him about the apartment and how fun OC was, and that she had taken a bath - a bath!, and that Cindy had given her new clothes -didn't Biggs like them?. And then it had been about Joshua. Wasn't he cool? He looked like a dog, but he was super-nice, and spoke kind of weird, he had made her dinner, and had the most amazing paintings... It had gone on and on. Biggs had enjoyed her continuous prattle. But she appeared to have run out of things to say. 

"We are going to see someone that may have some information Alec needs." 

Her eyes opened wide. "He's sending me on a mission?? Me?" 

Biggs laughed. "Find that surprising?" 

"Well, yes. I mean, even after all I've done?" She looked down, her cheeks turning pink. 

"Yup." He answered, then added: "He's not sending you alone." It was a joke as well as a warning. 

She nodded, serious. She understood. "So, what am I supposed to do?" 

Biggs smiled, proud of her. "Okay, here's the deal..." 

"So... ladies, everything settled?" Alec asked, smiling. It earned him an empty look and a nod from Nicole, a half smile from Cindy and a glare from Max, who pushed him into a corner where the others couldn't hear them. 

"How could you do this? How could you set this up without telling me about it?" 

"Well, it was kind of a spur of the moment thing. And to answer the second question: You would have said no." 

"Damn right I would have!" She spat back. She was seething. "You think I can't take care of myself?" 

"Look Max, something really strange is going on. Apparently you are the center of it. I don't want to take any chances. Besides, it's not just you that you have to worry about now." 

She glowered at him. "That is so low." 

"It's still true." 

"Listen to me, pal. I am through with you, or anyone else, making decisions for me." 

"Max, I..-" 

"No! I've had it!" She poked his chest with her finger, making him step backwards, until he collided with the wall. "I know you have the best intentions. But I am not a child. And I will not be treated as one. Not anymore. Is that clear?" All the furious temper was back. She was the spirited, tough girl he'd met back at Manticore. 

He just nodded. 

"Good." She said. She was turning around when his 'Max' stopped her. "What?" 

"I understand. And you are right. Should have told you." He paused and looked at her straight in the eyes. His own gaze was completely serious. "But I will not promise it's not going to happen again. I'll do whatever it takes to keep you and our baby safe. I am going to _try_ to tell you things first. You have my word on that." 

They stared into one another's eyes, until she finally said. "Well, at least you are not lying to me." She sighed heavily. "Fine. As long as you tell me things, I am going to _try_ to listen to them. But I won't promise you that I will go along with anything I don't like, or that I won't fight you every step of the way if that is how things go." 

He let his lips curve into a hint of a smile. "I never expected less from you." 

"Long as we understand each other." She gave him half a smile. 

He chuckled. "Well, what about miss sympathy over there?" He tilted his head. 

"What about her?" 

"I just think it can't hurt to have her around, you know, extra couple of eyes and all." 

"Oh, you mean seeing as I am pregnant, hated by humans, hunted by a government agency nobody's heard from and by some lunatics with seriously disgusting tendencies, and now apparently also some kind of message?" She shook her head, a sad smile on her lips. 

"Er.. yeah." 

"Well, I suppose I can deal with having her around. I mean, she can't be worse than that first day with you. At least she's quiet." She said defiantly. 

He laughed, shaking his head. As proud and stubborn as she was, she had also been trained. She knew what had to be done. 

Very well, he could also start to keep his promise. 

"Yeah, listen, about Nicole. Biggs and I have never heard that Manticore did S&P. Yes, we had some training on it, but only so we'd know how they thought, how to get around them to... well, you get the drift." 

"I do. So you think she was lying?" 

"No." 

"Yeah, me neither. She didn't know what the mission was before, right?" After his silent confirmation, she continued, "And she had to know you would find it odd. So why even bring it up? She could have just said electronics and hand to hand. Besides, she doesn't look like the type who would go through the trouble of lying." 

"Exactly. That's what puzzles me." He nodded. "Makes no sense at all." 

"You think she is dangerous?" 

"I don't think so. At least not for you. She accepted the mission. I saw it in her eyes. She understands what that entitles. She'll protect you with her life." 

"Okay." Max nodded. "I'll keep my eyes open anyway." 

"Good girl." He smiled. A smile that turned a little sheepish as he added. "You know what? This wasn't so hard. Talking with you, that is." 

"Well, maybe you just caught me off guard." She winked at him and then tossed her hair over her shoulder as she twirled around to go join OC and Nicole. 

He smiled as he looked at her retreating back. It hadn't been hard at all. He definitely underestimated her sometimes. She was really smart, it was hard to get anything past her when she was thinking clearly and listening. 

Biggs took a thorough look around before stepping out of the car. They were in front of a small wooden house in the middle of some mountains. He motioned for Ralph to join him and walked to the front door, the only door by the looks of it. He knocked on it once and then stepped back so that he would be visible from either of the two windows. 

He heard low shuffling sounds on the inside of the cabin, but no one came to the door. He waited a few seconds before knocking again, this time more forcefully. Ralph eyed him, but didn't say a thing. When there was still no answer he took a deep breath and said in a loud voice: "I know you are in there, ma'am. Please come out." He waited a few seconds. "I know you are 35 years old. I know you go by the name of Mrs. Dean and that you cash the occasional cheque under that name in the bank in town. I know you have a little boy with you who is not really yours. And I know your real name is Priscilla Olsen." 

A trembling voice came from behind the blinds on the window to their left, the one Biggs had been talking towards. "Who are you? What do you want?" She tried to sound angry. 

"Listen ma'am, I found you through Eyes Only. I know you are in hiding, and you're smart not to trust anyone. But believe me, if I found you, your ex-brother in law will too, sooner or later." He raised his hands in front of him. "You know what he is, right? You know what he and his people can do. You must know we could burst in there without a problem if we were with them, right? You also know we would have no qualms about doing it, either. You know what _he_ did." His voice was firm and reasonable. "Please, ma'am, just open up. We only need a few minutes." 

"Go away." The voice sounded even shakier now. 

Biggs looked at Ralph and then at the door. He continued to talk while the X6 started working on the lock. She finished in a couple of seconds, but then looked up at him mouthing the word 'bar'. He showed no change on his expression, but made a twirling movement with his finger behind his back. She nodded and moved to go around the house. All the while, he kept trying to reason with the woman. He briefly reflected on the fact that he could be extremely patient when he was trying to accomplish something. He would have smirked mockingly at himself, except that would not look good to the woman gazing out the blinds at him. So he just continued to look serious and talk away, buying Ralph some time. 

Ralph found a small window in the back that clearly belonged to a bathroom. She reached out and silently pried it open. It wasn't hard. She slid in, letting herself fall soundlessly into an old-fashioned bathtub. As she carefully opened the curtain around it, she wondered why on earth there was a bathtub in this shabby cabin. Her musings were interrupted when she found herself dodging a frying pan directed at her head. She didn't manage to avoid it completely, though; it hit the back of her left shoulder. Her hand shot back, she caught the pan before it could be retrieved by her attacker. She yanked hard, bracing herself to take the weight of the aggressor on her back. She planned to use that weight as leverage to throw whoever it was against one of the walls. As she felt the impact, however, she completely reversed her move, turning around to get a hold of the light body, placing her free hand against his mouth. She found herself staring into a pair of beautiful and scared eyes. She saw the kid try to hide his fear and struggle to free himself. Biggs had warned her, and yet she was surprised at the strength she had to use to maintain her grip on him. 

"Hello, Ray." She said in a really low voice, flashing him a cocky smile. "Mind if we have a little chat?" 

Ray blinked twice. She was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen. He hated to admit it, but she was even prettier than his mom, which was, according to his standards, as good-looking as anyone could get. She was also strong. She was holding him in place with only one arm with the other one covering his mouth, and she was smiling as if that was no big deal. He didn't want to brag, cause that was wrong, his mommy had told him that and so had his aunt later, but he was really strong. Not as strong as his father, of course, cause he was the strongest man in the world. Still, he could help his aunt lift things, and sometimes even carry stuff she couldn't. But this girl could restrain him. He immediately understood. She was one of them. 

He had been really confused when he'd woken up in that strange place. The last thing he remembered was that he had been put through _the test_. And yet there he had been, surrounded by strangers. They had looked nice, but he didn't understand, why wasn't he back at the school? Where were the others? Where was his dad? He had been afraid he had messed up, that they had sent him away because he wasn't strong enough. But he had passed. He had the scar. And the lady had said so too. So maybe he had been sent here with his aunt for another purpose. He had tried to figure out what that could be, but as much as he had tried, nothing made sense to him. It all made his head ache. 

So he had decided he was going to wait. Someone would eventually come pick him up. 

And it looked like they were here. 

He nodded his head, his eyes staring into hers, until she carefully removed her hand. She didn't move it far, though. 

"I am ready." He said, trying to look tough. 

She did her best to hide her surprise. He obviously thought she was supposed to be here. His words indicated he had been expecting someone. Well, she could adjust to that. "Good." She said, nodding seriously. "Your aunt doesn't seem convinced, we will have to go quietly." 

"She doesn't understand. Just like my mom." He said with a trace of sadness. 

Ralph just looked at him and then motioned for the window. The sound of Biggs' voice could still be heard coming from the front of the house as they quickly exited through the small window. She placed a finger over her lips, as they walked back around the house. She made a small movement of her arm, which immediately caught Biggs' attention. She tilted her head to the side, where Ray was standing at her side. She placed a hand on the little boy's shoulder while Biggs turned as if to leave, only to spin back abruptly and charge towards the door. The old wood immediately gave way to the force of the hit, splintering. The block behind it resisted a little bit more. But it broke at the second strike. 

Biggs blurred inside and in one fluid motion took the bat out of Priscilla's hand and spun her around, both hands trapped in one of his own at her back. "I'm sorry it had to come to this." He said as he carefully pressed his forearm against her windpipe. As he felt her body go lax in his arms, he gently lifted her and carried her to one of the beds in the room, where he set her down. He looked down at her one last time before heading for the door to motion Ralph and the little kid in. 


	14. Messages

A/N: Thank you so much Infie! (I know I say it all the time, but I still mean it). Thank you all for reading and for reviewing and for being patient with me. 

Tough Call

**Messages**

"So... Nicole... how did you get Normal to give you a job anyway?" Max asked the woman pedaling beside her. She had said no more than a few monosyllables all day. At first Max had been grateful, but it was starting to get to her. The seriousness, the quietness. "Was it your charming personality?" 

"No." Nicole answered serious. *****Duh!*** **Max thought, but remained silent. "I told him he had to hire me." 

"Just like that?" Max studied her, incredulous. 

"Yes." 

"And the weirdest part is… Normal is probably going to love you now." Max chuckled. "Wait a sec… I bet you even told him which packages to give us so we'd have a straightforward route." She looked around. "One through the best parts of town, at that." She extended one arm to encompass the rich surroundings, the brick mansions, the large lawns, the tall trees lining up at both sides of the streets, the occasional luxury car. 

"Of course." Was the curt reply. 

One of said vehicles was approaching them now. Max watched Nicole's eyes focus on it. Her hand moved behind her back, and she increased the pace discreetly, only to start decreasing it slowly as the car came nearer, so that she remained between Max and it at all times. Max shook her head as the car passed them without so much as a glance in their direction. She sighed. 

"Listen, about this whole 'bodyguard' thing, it really isn't that necessary. I mean, okay, I understand I'm supposed to be careful and all, but you don't have to go all paranoid on me, you know?" she said. 

Nicole shot her a grave look. "I'm doing my job." 

"Yeah, yeah, I get that." She looked at the other woman. "Despite what Alec thinks, I can still take care of myself." 

"What do you mean despite what he thinks?" The gray haired woman asked. Max could have sworn she saw a puzzled look in those silver eyes. "He knows you can. He wouldn't have sent you with me otherwise." 

Max blinked. "What?" 

"He doesn't trust me. As well he should not. He wouldn't have sent you with me if he did not think you would be able to handle anything." 

Max opened her mouth to reply but closed it again. That explanation sounded a lot better than anything else she could come up with. She smiled. Not even Nicole's return to her usual gloominess managed to put her spirits down. 

* * *

"My name is Ralph," The X6 said. "and this is.." 

"Andrew." Biggs interrupted before she could finish. 

"Yes, Andrew." Ralph nodded. "We need you to tell us some things." 

Ray just nodded. He sent a couple of glances in his direction, but the rest of the time his eyes remained fixed on Ralph. Biggs had to suppress his smile. A whole new level of respect towards his friend Alec arose. _He had known it all along. That was why he had suggested Biggs take Ralph with him, of course. The kid was completely fascinated by her. He had to be … what? Six? Seven? And she was this beautiful thing who was big enough to inspire his respect, adoration, but young enough he would not feel awkward around her. He could not remember much about being Ray's age, yet he was sure he would have thought of her as a fairy princess… had he known what a fairy princess was, his mind added. Well, even not knowing what a fairy or an angel was, he would have been enthralled by her. Manticore had not been too concerned with highlighting the beauty of its females back then. _

But Ray knew what a princess was, and whatever his idea of one had been before, Biggs was sure Ralph was replacing it right this very second. 

His eyes connected with hers and he nodded. She turned back to face the boy. 

"Do you still remember what you were instructed on about the ancient language?" She asked. She had a perfect mixture of sweetness and command in her voice. 

"I remember all the teachings until I was... taken away after... the test." Ray replied. 

"Andrew is going to show you some symbols. I want you to tell me all you understand." 

"Is this another test?" The little eyes looked anxiously up at her. "If I pass, you'll take me back to the school?" 

To her credit, Ralph didn't even look a little unruffled as she answered. Her voice sounded completely secure. "You will not be taken back to the school. It is in your own interest and ours that you remain with your aunt for the time being." 

"It is however important for us to make sure you haven't forgotten what you were taught. You must be ready when the time comes." Biggs added, hoping he'd been cryptic enough to comfort the poor little boy. 

"Oh." Ray said, nodding. "I understand." His little face showed the confusion he was experiencing. 

"Are you ready?" Biggs asked. The kid just nodded, taking a deep breath. 

"Now, remember, some of them you might not know yet. Just tells us the ones you do understand." Ralph added, smiling sweetly. Ray looked into her eyes and nodded again before looking down at the paper in Biggs' hand. 

* * *

Regina looked around with disgust. This place was horrible. It offended her sense of tidiness. 

She bent down and picked up yet another piece of who-knows-what and threw it inside the bag she was carrying. 

Joe by her side made a similar movement. 

"Why do we have to do this? Why can't _they_ do the dirty work?" Regina asked. 

"Cause this was our assignment." The redheaded girl on the other side of the room answered. 

"That's what I mean. Why do we get this assignment?" 

"Probably because we were the ones found sleeping without a sentry." Joe said. 

Regina sighed. "I just can't stand this stench. I bet none of them would have any problems doing this. I am sure they can't have our enhanced sense of smell." 

"You don't know that. They must have been designed with a variety of purposes in mind. Maybe they can smell better than us." 129 said, ready to defend anything that involved the transhumans since the previous night. "Besides, it's not that bad." 

"Yeah." Joe put in, smiling. "Maybe you have a little too much canine DNA." 

Regina just glared at them. "Very funny." 

"I thought it was." Joe said. "Didn't you, Lizzie?" 

Lizzie beamed. She just loved the new name. 

* * *

Logan took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose before putting them back on. This was going nowhere. He had been at it all day and had only managed to cover around a third of it. 

He was not going to give up, though. 

At least it was something to do. 

He had tried to push it to the back of his mind yesterday, but he had dreaded having to face this day as he'd gone to sleep. What was he supposed to do? They had destroyed everything. It wasn't just the equipment. It was what it represented. The computers had been a means to his purpose in life. What was he if not Eyes Only? All his adult life he had worked to fight the unfairness of this broken world. To distance himself from his family. To give back what he'd received. To provide the truth to those who had no access to it. It had not been easy. He'd had to give up a lot. But by the end of the day he felt it was worth it, because he was helping others. Even if it was just providing information. 

But now? It all had been taken away from him. What was he supposed to do? And to make matters worse, he didn't even have Max anymore. He regretted what he'd said to her. It had been just such a shock. Yet there was no turning back. He was sure Max would eventually forgive the things he'd said. But there was no future for them. She had meant that even before his outburst. Which had probably only added to his fury, to his feeling of impotence. He'd lost her. 

Even if she hadn't been so adamant, there was Alec. He'd seen it in the other man's eyes, both that day and last night. There was no way Logan stood a chance. 

He'd been completely surprised to see the X5 that morning. He had arrived with a pile of computer equipment, which he proceeded to arrange around Logan. He had explained to Logan that some weird runes had appeared on Max's skin, and that he needed Logan to try to translate them, since he basically had nothing to do and Alec had to show his face at work. 

Logan had been shocked at first. Alec, asking him for help? But then a feeling of respect for the X5 had filled him. To him, Max came first. He was worried about her, and he'd do whatever it took. He wasn't sure he himself would have been so altruistic. Of course, there was also the fact that Alec did not feel threatened by Logan at all. So he wouldn't think twice about asking for his help. And unlike Max, Alec did not feel he had to give something in return. 

_"Hey, Logan. I figured you'd be bored here all day, so I brought you a little something to keep you occupied,"_ had been his words. 

_"What makes you think I will be doing you any favors?"_ Logan hadn't been able to keep the resentment from showing, even when he'd been extremely grateful for having something to do. 

"Hmmm… Lemme think… Well, there is the fact that you are staying at my apartment without paying any rent, you know?" Alec had replied, with a raised eyebrow and a smirk on his face. 

So now here Logan was, trying to decipher the weird symbols. The computer Alec had given him had a huge database of ancient languages - one Logan had tried to access on countless occasions without much luck, he wondered how Alec had obtained it, but he was still having a hell of a time translating. He was however surprised at the accuracy of Alec's drawings. He had given Logan a piece of paper with little scribbles neatly drawn on it. So far, all of the symbols he had been able to find were a perfect match. 

Apparently, along with a photographic memory, reproducing said memories was another trait of X5s. 

He shook his head and went back to the task at hand. 

* * *

"Josh? You around?" The X5 sauntered into the house. 

"Joshua here." The voice carried over from the basement. 

"Hey, whatcha doing there, buddy?" Alec asked as he descended the stairs. 

"Painting." The transhuman answered with a trace of sadness. "Laying low." 

Alec winced as he approached him to pat his shoulder. "I know it's a drag, Josh." Joshua looked at him briefly, before turning back to his canvas. "Listen, I have to go to Terminal City, remember I was telling you about it the other day? Biggs – I haven't introduced you to my friend Biggs, have I? – well, anyway, he was there this morning. There are a lot of others over there. And, they're getting organized. I thought maybe you'd like to join me. You know, see some other people besides me and Max…" 

He watched Joshua's face light up and heard him growl his reply happily. 

Alec stepped outside and looked around before motioning for Joshua to follow him. They both disappeared into the sewer. 

* * *

Mole watched the tall figure approach the Southern entrance. It was wearing a big sweater with its hood up, effectively preventing the cameras from getting a glimpse of the face below it. The fact that whoever did not want their face to be seen, added to the sheer size of the body gave away their genetically tampered with genes. Mole, however, had been trained to never assume anything, obvious or not. 

Everyone was already in position, and he watched them surround the newcomer, their guns cocked and their grasp on them firm. It had no way out. Just as Mole was about to sit back ,something in the lower right corner of the screen caught his eye. At the same time a little stone hit Lyon right between the eyes. The hand that had caught Mole's attention moved again in a rapid succession, too fast for the eye to follow, and three other rocks found their way to the head of each of the other transhumans around the big guy. As Mole was getting up, a face with light-colored hair and a mischievous look appeared on screen, waving at the camera with a wink. Mole felt a rush of rage course through him. Damned X5s they thought it was all so easy. He was going to have to have a little talk with his sentries. They had been really careless. As he was thinking this, he watched the young man raise his hand to his mouth, and as he took it away, a cigar was placed between his white teeth. 

"Son of a bitch!" 

* * *

"Who the hell does he think he is?" Lyon protested, as he leaned on the railing to watch the X5 and his dog-faced friend. "He comes in here acting like he's just paying us a little visit, he inspects the whole place and then he just sits down like this is a fucking tea-house." 

"Oh, shut up, Lyon. You are just pissed cause he got the drop on all of you." Dix interceded. "Besides, he's with Joshua. Joshua is a good guy." 

"Yeah, right. He hit us with little stones. Big deal." 

"He had to move his entire arm to throw those little no-big-deal stones. If he had a gun, none of you would be alive to tell the story." Luke cut him off. 

"And neither would he. You guys would have killed him." 

A bitter laugh escaped Mole's throat. "Yeah, if _we'd_ been alive." Every head turned to look at him as he came out of the shadows. "You saw that cigar of his? That was mine. It was laying on the table right behind me. He got inside headquarters right under our noses and none of us here," he said looking at Dix and Luke, "even realized it. He could have killed us all." 

"Who the hell is he anyway?" Rat-guy asked, his voice filled with resentment. 

"You didn't recognize him?" Mole asked, searching their faces. 

"Not like we had that much contact with the Xs." Luke shrugged. 

"Yeah, the only time we saw any of them was when they were kids and Lydecker made them march through the basement." 

"Or when they were making a little trip to the re-indoc section." Lyon added with a wink that caused everyone to chuckle. 

Everyone except Mole. 

"Oh!" Dix suddenly sobered up. "So that's how you know him. You saw him being taken to re-indoc?" 

"No. I wouldn't be able to tell one X5 from the other. I know _this one cause I saw him being taken to re-indoc and psy-ops _more than once_." Mole answered. "That boy down there has been through more than most of you guys could even imagine. So I don't know who he is, or what he did when he was at Manticore, but whoever survived that many stays down there and is still smiling has my deepest respect." Mole clamped his jaw shut. _

The rest of the transhumans stared after him as he went down the stairs to talk to the X5 and Joshua.

* * *

"I believe that belongs to me?" 

Alec smiled as he raised his head to look at the lizard guy approaching them. He handed the guy his cigar, which he grabbed and examined closely. 

"Don't worry, I don't carry any diseases." He said with a smirk. Then he frowned. "At least… not that I know of." He shook his head and extended his hand. "I'm Alec. This is Joshua." He tilted his head to the side. 

"I am Mole." The lizard-man said, shaking first his hand and then Joshua's. "And you are the one the fed us." He addressed Joshua. 

"You did, huh?" Alec asked, turning to look at his friend. 

Joshua nodded, looking down before raising his head again, his hair flying around from side to side, his lips curving into a shy smile. "Upstairs people. They forgot to feed downstairs people sometimes." He shrugged. 

Alec nodded, as if confirming something to himself and smiled, before turning back towards Mole. "I guess you are the one Nicole left in charge, huh?" 

Mole nodded and narrowed his eyes. "You got a problem with that?" 

"Whoa, buddy, lighten up!" Alec said, raising his hands defensively, an amused look in his eyes. "If she left you in charge, I am sure you are quite a professional. She's nothing if not a true blue soldier." 

Mole relaxed. "Yeah, sorry." When Alec took his hand to his ear pretending not to have heard his mumble, he added. "Don't push it pal!" Which earned him a grin from the X5. "Fact is, your little stunt before didn't leave me – or any of us- in a very good position." 

"Hey, don't beat yourself up over it. I cheated. I mean, I had the layout of the place from my friend Biggs, and a real live transgenic to distract you with." Alec offered. 

"Yeah, which was exactly what you were trying to demonstrate. Any bad-guy could have a mole in here and do exactly what you did. Am I right or am I right?" 

"Well…" Alec wriggled his eyebrows. "Not anymore." He drawled with a wink. 

"Oh, you bet your ass!" 

* * *

Regina approached the fence and placed a hand against the wire as she looked at the young man walking a block away from them. 

Regina murmured, without taking her eyes from him, "Isn't that…?" 

"494." Joe answered her unfinished question. 

She nodded. "I thought so." 

"Well, whoever he is… he's cute." Lizzie commented, leaning against Joe to look over his shoulder. 

Regina just kept staring at him. He nodded at her in passing and moved into one of the buildings. The sun was behind her, so even if his sight allowed him to see this far, it wasn't likely he would have been able to make out her features. 

"Women!" Joe exclaimed. "Come on. Cute or not, doesn't look like he's coming to help us, and this junk is not going to collect itself." 

Regina sighed and went back to picking up garbage. 

* * *

"Yeah." Alec said into his phone. "Hey, buddy." He smiled and then nodded. "Okay, what did they say? … Uh huh… okay… Yup, all right. Meet you back here tonight. Crash. You know where it is, right? Okay, see you there." He closed the connection and turned to look at Joshua. "You sure you want to stay here?" 

"Joshua stays here. That's the plan." 

Alec searched his eyes for a few seconds before he nodded. "All right, Josh. You're a big guy." He bit his lips. "Of course, now all I got to do is tell Max about this. Just what I needed." A lazy smirk slowly made its way into his face and he raised his shoulders. "Oh, well, she hasn't yelled at me since… this morning?" 

He was not worried at all. In fact, he was looking forward to it. Max was back to shouting. None of the ice-queen treatment she had subjected him to after finding out about Biggs. That was good. 

He'd spent an hour talking to Mole. The organization of the place was pretty good. Mole had told him how everything was done, who was who, what everyone did. Alec had asked Dix, who seemed to be the most literate of them all, to help him out with the runes. He had then left him and Joshua, to take a little tour around the streets. He'd run into a couple of transhumans transporting some metal parts from one building to the next, seen a group of X6s cleaning and one of the guys who had met Joshua at the entrance doing some kind of inventory in another building. Everyone looked at him curiously, but he had only nodded in passing. 

He'd then gone to do some more deliveries. He'd left Joshua here. The big guy seemed to be having a great time around the others. Alec understood how he felt. 

He'd come back about two hours later. Mole had given him an update on what they needed, on what was being done. 

Alec sighed as he left, wondering how all of a sudden he was being given reports to. Well, he had known it would happen, as soon as Biggs had told him about the place. He had known they'd need a wake up call. And he had known that would put him in this position. But what was he supposed to do? Leave them as they were, sitting ducks waiting for White's attack? Maybe he would have, once. Things had not looked as gloomy before. He had thought they could all get a life. Sure, he'd kept in touch with Biggs, but only cause they were friends. And with Max, because… well, because she was Max. 

Yet nothing had turned out as it was supposed to. White had proved to be more problematic than he'd initially thought. So now they needed to stick together. There was really nothing else he could do. 

He frowned as he walked to his bike. Dix had been able to come up with some stuff, and apparently, so had Biggs. Now there was only one thing left for him to do. 

* * *

"Yes." White answered his call. "You sure? Very well… Stand by for more instructions. Fenos 'tol." 

* * *

"Okay… so you wanna tell us the real reason you are here?" Alec asked the gray haired woman as they were all sitting around a table at Crash. He had purposefully called Max and told her to meet him at the bar, so Nicole would have no choice but to come. He had paid Logan a little visit earlier and had a talk with Biggs as he had arrived. Now he wanted answers. 

"I came looking for her." 

Max choked on her drink. Alec didn't seem surprised. 

"Why?" He asked, examining her face closely. 

"I was supposed to find her and protect her." Nicole answered curtly. 

"So the mission Alec assigned you made you really happy, huh?" Max asked belligerently. "No wonder you accepted it so quickly." 

"I would have accepted it anyway. I do not question my assignments once I've agreed to take them." Nicole replied. "But it did make things easier for me." 

Max was about to keep arguing when Alec raised a hand. She huffed but remained silent. "Why does she need to be protected?" 

"She carries a message. It is supposed to have appeared by now." 

Max looked at Alec out of wide eyes. He remained calm and asked, "You know what the message is?" 

"I do." 

"And why the hell didn't you say something before?" Max yelled at the other woman. 

Nicole, however, remained absolutely impassive. "You would not have believed me." 


	15. Nicole

A/N: Thank you so much Infie!!! 

**Tough Call**

**Nicole**

Biggs looked up and smiled at the lizard guy. He had had to use the signals Alec had given him to be able to get in. Security was much tighter around the place now. Damn, he had missed working with transgenics the few months he'd been on the outside. Everything was so much simpler. Just a few hours, and everything was functioning as it should. Of course… the outside world had its advantages as well, he thought, smiling at some private memories. 

He glanced at Ralph, who was looking around in fascination. The room was filled with transhumans moving from one side of the room to the other. She squeaked with delight as she spotted Joshua coming into the room and ran to greet him. 

He and Alec had decided to bring her here, since she probably would be better off than left at OC's apartment alone all day as the human went to work. And by the looks of the scene he had witnessed previously at the bar, all night as well, Biggs chuckled to himself. 

They had left Ray with his aunt. Despite what Biggs had said to scare the woman into opening the door, they were perfectly safe there. Logan had done a pretty god job, he had hidden all traces of them. Well… almost, he smirked. Setting up that account the day after Ray had disappeared had been a little glitch. But it had been well hidden. It had taken Biggs a few hours the night before –and a stroke of inspiration, added to the always necessary quota of luck- to find the link. And he had destroyed it. Logan's computer was no more. The brilliance of the plan had been that Logan hadn't really known where they were. He had booked them on a plane – under false names of course- but he had sent someone else in their place. He had arranged for some of his E.O. contacts to drive different people to diverse locations, so that not even he knew where they were. Biggs had to hand it to the human. It was not bad at all. So now only Biggs and Ralph knew where they were. And it wasn't likely anyone would bother asking them. Why should they? 

He spoke a few words with Mole, leaving him in charge of the young X6 and then left to go back to the bar. 

* * *

The sounds of the crowd in the other parts of the bar receded to a drone as each of them zoned in on the others. Max was staring disbelievingly at Nicole, but the other X5's eyes were still fixed on Alec's. The male transgenic narrowed his eyes as he asked: 

"And what makes you think we'll believe you now?" 

She answered levelly. "You've already tried to find out what the message is. Most likely have the gist of it by now. All you want from me is confirmation." 

Alec couldn't repress a slight smirk. She was good. "Fine, tell me what it says." 

"When the shroud of death covers the face of the earth, the one whose power is hidden will deliver the helpless." She recited, as if by heart. "And then it goes on to describe some alignment of planets and phase of the moon." 

"Shit." Alec mumbled. He then looked at Max, nodding. "It's pretty much what I got out of what Biggs, Logan and Dix came up with." He turned back to Nicole. "Okay, so… wanna tell us how you came to be in possession of this information?" 

"Dr. Sandeman told me." 

"You know Dr. Sandeman? You've seen him?" Max asked, wide eyed. "So he was the one that put this in me… Where is he?" 

"That's a good question," Alec cut in. "Why isn't he here yet? You said you had to _find _her. As I recall, finding in Manticore equaled informing base." 

"She had no time. I was with her all day." Max supplied. 

"If I had wanted to, I would have." Gray eyes looked gravely into brown. "I was alone plenty of the times we got back to Jam Pony. As was I when you left me by the bikes to make the deliveries." She turned back to Alec, quickly dismissing her. "What I said was that I was _supposed_ to find her." 

Alec puckered his lips for a second, his brow still furrowed. "True. But I distinctly remember you saying you came looking for her, without the 'supposed'." 

"I did. I knew she was in contact with other transgenics." 

Alec shook his head. "Okay, that's it," he stated, raising his hands, "why don't we start at the beginning?" 

* * *

"I was assigned to him shortly before the '09 escape. Director Renfro had noticed I excelled in the S&P lessons. I was sent to make sure this former Manticore doctor didn't escape, but also to protect him, as he was of extreme importance to the program. I was told he had tried to escape, and that he usually convinced the guards sent to him into helping him. I was ordered not to socialize with him. Probably one of the reasons they chose me. I never mixed with others. Not even the other soldiers that I quartered with." She ignored Biggs' 'you don't say'. 511 had arrived at the bar just as she was about to begin her explanations, so they had all left and were now talking in a nearby empty warehouse. "I was taken to an old manor near Salem, and I spent the rest of my years there. It was just the doctor and I, and a dozen guards. They continued my lessons there." 

"Geez, nothing like personalized education…" Biggs whistled. "You must have learnt a lot faster than the rest of us." 

"I did." She answered curtly. "The times I was left alone with Sandeman, he would talk endlessly. He told me stories about this old breeding cult, he told me all its history, how it worked. I never gave any indication that I was listening, but he continued to tell me anyway. He told me these people were trying to wipe all humanity out of the face of the earth. But that I shouldn't worry. That he had made us so we would all survive." 

"That's why I didn't get sick." Max whispered, looking down, and then into Alec's eyes. He just nodded, touching her hand slightly with his own, before he turned back to the gray haired X5. 

"As the years went by, he taught me the language, ancient Minoan. It was interesting. He told me all there was to know about the cult." 

"And how come he knew so much?" Max asked, unconsciously seeking Alec's hand as it left hers. 

"He was a part of it." Alec stated, leaning back and closing his eyes, his left hand going to rub the back of his neck. He didn't need to look to know that his friend Biggs was arriving at the same conclusion, or that Nicole was nodding. 

"He told me he left it." 

"Why?" 

"He had two sons. The older one passed this test they have to know if they are fitting to belong to the cult. But he knew the youngest one wouldn't. He had studied the boy's genetics. So he left them and founded Manticore. The government had this project, and he thought he would be able to perfect a way to fight the cult. He made us so we would survive. But then the government threw him out. He was too dangerous. They ordered his death, but Renfro – who had also belonged to the cult, put him in the safe house. He had managed to place her at Manticore shortly before that. She remained his link with the place." 

"So that's why she told me to find him." Max shook her head. "But why didn't she say so before?" 

"When he found out they were going to move on him, Dr. Sandeman destroyed all the files. She didn't know about your DNA. They almost never communicated, for safety reasons." 

"Okay, hold up a minute." Alec interrupted her. "This is all very nice, but how are we supposed to buy all this? I can't believe you did." He said looking at Nicole with raised eyebrows. 

"I didn't, actually." She answered, her glance holding his. 

* * *

"Okay, can you be any more cryptic?" Biggs tried to break the silence that followed Nicole's words. 

Max was looking terribly frustrated, and Alec was deep in thought, his eyes never leaving the so-called bodyguard. 

"I'm just telling you what he told me. He did so over the course of the years, and as I said, I never pretended to listen. That is, until Manticore was burnt down by you. I heard a phone call made by Renfro just hours before. She said..-" 

"Hold it." Alec raised his hand. "How?" 

"Part of the lessons they also continued were my computer ones. It was their only mistake. I had a computer and plenty of free time. Guarding an old man is not very demanding. I pretty soon learnt to hack, I first tapped all the lines in the house, then I hacked into all of Manticore systems." When Alec and Biggs raised their eyebrows, she shrugged. "I was bored. It was the only way to stay in touch with the rest of the others like me." 

"So you knew like... what?" Biggs asked, curious. 

"Everything." She answered. "I was able to follow everything that was computerized there. I had access to every file. I could see the feed of the cameras. I knew everything." 

"And why the hell didn't you do anything about it?" Max suddenly shouted. "You could have crashed their system! You could have set everyone free!" 

"And why would I want to do that?" Nicole asked. Max snorted and looked at the other two looking for support, but they just raised their shoulders. 

"Not everyone felt like you, Max." Alec said, quietly. "It was our life, we were soldiers. I know it's hard for you to understand, but it was all we knew." He turned to look at Nicole again. "Everything, huh?" 

"That's how I knew you." Nicole admitted, looking at Alec. "They liked to… record… the sessions." 

Max watched Alec's eyes become darker, colder. For a second she thought he was going to leave them again, he would retreat to that place inside him. But he took a deep breath and motioned for the other woman to continue. 

"She said she had found the one they were looking for." Nicole continued. "And then, the facility was destroyed. And I lost all contact. I decided to stick around, it had been my last assignment after all. The old man started to get more anxious, saying the time was coming, that we had to get her. I pretended to go along, I thought it was the easiest way to get in touch with others like me, even if it was with one of the escapees." The disdain in her voice didn't escape Max, but she remained silent. "We also started to try to get in touch with every transgenic we got word of. We found two of them, one in the city, one in the woods. And then we found the X6. The one you call Ralph." 

"Ralph didn't recognize you." Biggs said. 

"She never saw me." Was the reply. "I saw a girl, and I went around her, so that I would get a clear shot and her ignorance of my presence at my side, if it came to it." The others nodded. Made perfect sense. Why would she let herself be seen? "She told him her story, and so I took one of the X6s with me and we went to the coordinates she had mentioned. We found nothing." She added, her eyes becoming colder for a second. "Nothing but blood." Max had to fight back the tears. Alec had told her earlier, during their lunch break at Jam Pony what Ralph had told him. Again, Alec's hand went to rest lightly on top of hers. "When I got back, she was no longer there. The Dr. had sent her so she could find you. He told me about you as well." She said looking at Biggs. "The exposition, he knew a necklace had been stolen. We knew it had to be an X5. But he thought some others could show up, so he went there every day after the robbery. He saw you. And he saw the guys you were spying on. He knew you'd come back to Seattle to warn him. It is the way we were trained. So he arranged it so you would find Ralph. Time was of the essence, he wanted to make sure she got here fast and safe. But she never called back after the first time. So when I got back there, I decided to come here by my self. Saying I was coming to get you," she looked at Max. 

"But you never intended to." Alec finished for her. "You just wanted to find the rest of us." She assented with a movement of her head. 

"But what if what he told you was true?" Max protested. 

"So half of humanity disappears." She answered, unruffled. "None of my business." 

* * *

Dr. Sandeman was tapping his cane impatiently. Why hadn't she called? She had said she'd found the X5, and he was obviously in touch with the girl Ralph. Maybe they still hadn't found _her_. Maybe the X6 had not remembered the numbers correctly? He snorted at himself. She was trained for such things. She wouldn't get it wrong. But the owner of the vehicle could have moved, or anything alike. He sighed frustrated. He knew Nicole would eventually find her. She was too much a professional. But time was of the essence. It had taken him years to convince Nicole what he was saying was the truth. He had much less time to convince Max. What if she refused to believe him, if she refused to cooperate? All the work would go down the drain, so much studying and testing for nothing! So much depended on her. 

But he refused to believe that. Everything would work out. 

It had to. 

* * *

"None of your business? None of your business?!?" Max's voice grew louder as she repeated her question. Biggs, who had not reacted at Nicole's words, flinched a little and squirmed in his seat uncomfortably. Okay, so maybe some humans were not as bad, but he had actually seen no fault in his fellow X5's reasoning. But seeing Max's reaction, he could see she did not share his views. He was glad he had remained silent. He and Max were not exactly best buddies. This was the first time he had actually been in front of her since the previous day. Except for a few minutes that morning, and she had been too busy with Ralph and then being mad at Alec to really see him. He was happy to keep it that way for the time being. No need to put the mother of his child against himself any more than she was already. 

As usual, it was Alec who calmed things down. 

"Even if you don't consider humans to be any of your business, what about us? You don't know for sure we are immune, all you have is his word." He reasoned. 

"Yes. But 452 said..-" 

"My name is Max!" 

".. she didn't get sick a few minutes ago." Nicole continued paying no attention to Max's interruption. "I assume she meant she was exposed and was immune." 

"Yeah. Could be…" Alec ran a hand through his hair, cranking his neck. 

Biggs watched Max's eyes harden as she looked at Alec. He was puzzled for a moment, but as she spoke, he understood. "All right, pretty boy, time for your beauty sleep." She raised her hand as he was about to protest. "Oh, no, you smart-ass, no retorts. You didn't sleep at all last night, I doubt you slept more than two hours the night before, and who knows before that. Weak boy like you needs to regain his strength." She said mockingly. She had recognized the signs of his tiredness. She was worried about him. And she was trying to look tough and don't let Alec see that. She suddenly turned to look at him. "You, make sure she doesn't go anywhere or talk to anyone." She ordered. "Come on, see? Your buddy is going to keep an eye on our friend Nicole." 

Alec stared for a second at Max, before smirking "You just can't wait to take me home, can you?" 

She tsked. "In the shape you're in, I could totally kick your ass. I mean I have done it before…" She raised her eyebrow. 

"Well, kicking, slapping, groping, squeezing… whatever works for you, babe." He drawled. "Personally, I'd rather ..-" He was stopped by a swift punch to his stomach. He doubled over and grabbed his side, his face a mask of pain. 

Max's eyes widened. "Your rib! I'm so sorry, I totally forgot!" She placed her arm around his waist to help him. "Are you all right? Can I do anything?" 

"How about a kiss to make it better?" Alec whispered, his head still down. 

"What?" 

"Gotcha!" a cocky smirk replaced the pained expression on his face and there was a twinkle in his eyes as he looked back up. 

"You… you… moron!" She managed before she walked to the door without even glancing at any of them. 

Alec chuckled and went after her. As he reached the door however, he turned around and nodded at Biggs. 

Biggs nodded back, acknowledging the confirmation of the order. 

After Alec stepped out, he turned to look at the girl who had remained serious through all the antics. 

"Say, Nicole… how do you feel about pizza?" 

* * *

Biggs and Nicole were walking side by side. He had ditched the car some fifteen blocks away from Crash. They hadn't exchanged any words since they left the bar. Biggs was busy watching the streets for any sign of trouble – Seattle was getting more and more agitated each day - while keeping an eye on her. 

"Where are we going?" Nicole suddenly said, making Biggs nearly jump. 

"I am shocked! I am worthy of the waste of your breath?" He said, putting a hand to his heart. She just kept walking. "Okay, sorry," He smiled apologetically, even when his eyes were saying differently. "My apartment. Why?" 

"I like knowing what to expect." 

"Oh, yeah…the whole Security and Protection…" He mocked. 

"It's what I do." 

"Funny, isn't it?" Biggs said. 

"Yes." She answered, surprising Biggs once again. Gray eyes looked at him coldly. "You did not think I would appreciate the irony of you being _my bodyguard now?" Nothing in her blank expression or her voice suggested otherwise, yet he could have sworn she was laughing at his expense. _

He shook his head. "You could have avoided this, you know? If you had just expressed yourself in a… different way." 

"I know." 

"You do, huh? And why didn't you? Oh wait, let me guess … you couldn't wait to get me all to yourself." He said sarcastically. 

"This way, I made the not trusting me easier." She said simply. 

"Honey, I hate to burst your bubble, but we still wouldn't have taken your word on this." 

She turned to look at him. "Not the two of you." She said matter-of-factly. "Plus, you would have had to resort to more subtle means to keep track of me. Thought I'd save you the trouble." 

Biggs remained standing there, staring at her back. He had suddenly got an image of him and Alec trying to restrain a furious Max, determined to go find the good old doctor for some answers. 

He shook his head once again and trotted to catch up to her again. 

* * *

"Everything is set." White whispered into his cellular phone. "Yes, it was a positive identification. We are ready to move as soon as she gives us the sign." He paused to listen and a muscle started twitching in his jaw. "I will not fail this time." He said, trying his best to keep his voice leveled. "Fenos'tol." 


	16. Gotcha!

A/N: Thank you so much Infie!!! You Rock! And thanks to goblie for lending me a bit of her knowledge. 

Tough Call

**Gotcha!**

Max closed the door behind her and glanced around. The house was awfully quiet, which was weird. She started to frown but forgot about it as her eyes focused on Alec. 

He had been going through the different rooms, making sure nothing was out of place, yet he had stopped when he saw her frown. He squirmed a little, hands in the pockets of his jacket and looked down before raising his eyes again to meet hers. He opened his mouth and promptly shut it again. His pupils dilated before he narrowed his eyes, a suspicious look coming into them. 

The little smile that she knew was the cause of his reaction broadened on her lips, making his eyebrows furrow even more. 

"What?" he asked warily. 

"Nothing." 

"Why are you smiling?" 

"You just look adorable when there's something you don't want to tell me," she said, still smiling. 

She watched his jaw drop and he blinked a couple of times. "Come again?" 

"You do," she answered. "Just like a little kid." The cautious look remained there. He wasn't sure where he was standing. Good. 

He shook his head as if to clear it. "Okay… so you know I have something to tell you that you are not going to like…" She nodded, not that it had been a question. "And you are still smiling." His words sounded almost like an accusation. 

"If there is one thing these past few days have taught me, Alec, it's that there is _always_ going to be something I'm not going to like." She shrugged. 

He just looked at her. 

After what seemed like an eternity, but couldn't have been more than thirty seconds, he raised his eyebrows and rolled his eyes, a corner of his mouth going up momentarily. His usual 'Yeah… well.. you've got a point' expression. He took a deep breath and plunged right into it: "Joshua is staying in Terminal City." 

Max blinked. No wonder he had been uncomfortable after seeing her frown upon entering. He had thought she had realized the big guy wasn't around. Which she would have, had he not been distracting her with his looking around, and moving, and breathing, and… 

He was still watching her. Waiting for her reaction. She could almost see what was going through his mind. That was rather remarkable, considering how he always managed to surprise her. 

But she had decided earlier that she would pay him back with the same currency. So instead of yelling at him, or scolding him, or even hitting him, she smiled and said: "Okay." 

Oh, yeah! That was what she wanted, that very same reaction. She almost laughed out loud at the shock he displayed. 

She couldn't hate him. She had been trying all night the night before. She just couldn't. She could understand only too well. After all, for ten years of her life another guy, Zack, had lied and hidden things from her with her 'best interests' at heart. Wasn't the same, it was worse. Cause she now knew Alec'd been in pain too. 

It still didn't make things right though. But she had been wavering. Just when she had been finally trying to find a way to forgive him, he'd done it again. The whole Nicole fiasco. She had been so pissed. Yelling at him had been exactly what she needed. That was good. That, she could deal with. It had been the perfect solution. Maybe she didn't hate him anymore or ache just seeing him, but that didn't mean she couldn't stay mad at him. Exactly the way out she needed. 

Until he had talked to her. 

If he had said something to appease her, she would have been able to ignore it. If he had lied to her, she would have remained mad at him. He hadn't. He had said exactly what she didn't want to hear. And then had _promised_ her he would try. 

She could not resist that. Honesty. Not like she hadn't made plenty of mistakes where he was concerned. She had been resigned, knowing she had to capitulate. Maybe her words hadn't sounded like much of an admission of defeat. But he had understood. 

And then he had told her about his concern regarding Nicole. It wasn't fair. He should not be able to disarm her defenses so easily, without even trying. 

Fine. She could deal with it. But if he thought he was the only one capable of keeping someone on their toes then he was sorely mistaken. 

* * *

Alec stared at Max, trying to figure out what had just happened. He had been expecting a variety of reactions from her. Rage, outrage, fury, hurt, or even worse, disappointment. Or coldness. 

Nothing could have prepared him for her acceptance. And it was real. He could see it in her eyes. 

"It will be probably for the best. He won't need to hide in there, he'll have others to talk to. And as much as I hate to admit it, he'll probably be safer," she was saying. 

Alec shook his head. He had to be really tired. Why was Max being so nice? Was she planning something? He searched her face again, but he couldn't find anything that would suggest that. 

She was an amazing woman. He should be thinking about what Nicole had told them, about the runes, about protecting Terminal City, about White, Sandeman. The list was endless. Yet all he could think of was how truly unique she was. He snorted at himself, thinking of the number of times he had used that word. Yet it fitted no one as well as her. She could be annoying, hard headed, stubborn, irritating. But she was also one of the strongest people he'd ever met. She was smart. And loyal. And unpredictable. And different. 

Unique. 

"So, uhm…what now?" She asked. 

"Now we figure out what the hell is going on." He replied, trademark grin twisting his lips. "No biggie." 

"Right." She rolled her eyes and laughed. But then she turned serious. "What do you think?" 

"I think there is too much we don't know. I mean, first there's Nicole. She doesn't seem like the kind who would lie, but we don't really know that. And even if she is not lying, there's no way to know the guy she was allegedly watching really was Sandeman. And even if it was, who's to say what he told her was true? On the other hand… why would he bother if it wasn't? And if Nicole has been straightforward with us, then he is not in contact with the cult anymore, she would have known and would have told us. I just don't know." He finished, raising his palms and resting his head on the back of the couch. 

Max nodded. "Well, if she wasn't lying, some of the things he told her are real… the whole initiation thing, the language, the message, it's what the others came up with… Then again, if she's not being honest, she could be telling us selected truths so we'll trust her…" She grabbed a wisp of her hair and started playing with it, frustrated. "This is going nowhere." 

Alec smiled a little. "Gee, Maxie, we've thought about it for all of... five seconds?" 

"Oh, you know what I mean. Too many what ifs." 

"Yeah, I know. Well, tomorrow we'll go get a little blood tested. See if there is anything we can get out of it, any ugly little evil viruses. Well, other than the genetically retro-targeted one you already have, that is." He winked at her. She rolled her eyes but didn't get offended, or mad, or even sad. He had to smile. 

"Ok, Terminal City?" She asked. He nodded. "Good. Might as well check out the place. Oh, and wipe that stupid smirk off your face. This is still MY city. Been around here a hell of a lot longer than any of you clowns," she said defiantly, her chin raised. 

He chuckled and closed his eyes. "Glad to see you're back, Max." Had he just said that? So not the thing to say right then. Sure, he was glad to see she was back to her former self. It just wasn't smart to remind her that she hadn't been, cause that might remind her of _why_ she hadn't, which could take her back to being mad at him. Right? He rubbed his eyes distractedly. Okay, time to make some silly comment, make her forget what he'd just said. Before he could, he felt a strong grip on his elbow and felt himself yanked from the sofa. He let her drag him into the bedroom with a mixture of wariness and amusement. 

She stopped beside the bed and pointed at it. "Go to sleep, mister." He was about to make a witty rejoinder, or at least what he thought would be one, about the situation, when she spoke again, raising her hand. "Save it. Don't waste your breath." He opened his mouth and she stopped him once again, laughing. "Alec, you just passed on a perfect opportunity to tell me how very unbecoming it is to act all tough guy and macho like." she snorted and raised an eyebrow. "You are evidently exhausted, slick." 

Oh, yeah? His arm moved with lightning speed to go around her waist and pin her to him. He smirked. "Never too tired for that, babe." He jested. 

"Really?" Did she just…purr? Her hands spread on his chest and one of her legs pushed it's way between his and entangled itself with them and… pulled hard, the hands on his torso giving it a hard shove. He looked up from the bed he'd just fallen onto, only to see her walk to the door and turn off the lights. Okay, so maybe he was a little too tired. How else did he not see that one coming? 

"Max," he whispered. 

She turned around to look at him. "I won't leave the apartment without letting you know first. I promise." And she left, closing the door behind her. 

He sighed. Was he becoming so predictable? That was the last thing he needed. Especially with everything that was going on. His mind wandered once again towards everything they'd learnt in the last couple of days. This Sandeman thing was really giving him a headache. Was it real? Why wouldn't it be? And this virus thing… What was it with scientists and viruses? … He was glad White hadn't been around for the last few days. Except to trash Logan's place, but that was to be expected. Logan couldn't have really expected that no one would ever trace him. … Nicole, he could see no reason not to trust her, and yet… He had to figure out a way to get the folks in Terminal city what they needed... There was something else he was supposed to take care of, but he couldn't quite place it… Biggs had taken care of White's kid and the aunt, he'd set up a different account for her. That was ok. SO what was he forgetting? … The deliveries had to be more organized. He had to put Biggs or possibly Nicole to make sure each of them had a good route so they could be away for long stretches of time and Normal wouldn't be pestering them. Yeah, he'd take care of it in the morning… Still something escaping him… Max had looked so beautiful. She should smile more often… Had to remember to bring Joshua's stuff to Terminal City tomorrow. Big guy would want his books and canvases and paint… Why had she been in such a good mood? … Cell phones. He needed to score some cell phones… Too tired. 

The last thing on his mind as he drifted of to sleep was that beautiful face smiling at him. 

* * *

"Well, here we are." Biggs announced with a bright smile as they reached the apartment building. "Ain't it great?" She didn't answer. He hadn't expected her to. She'd been silent the last part of their walk. But he didn't mind. After all, he'd spent the greater part of his life in a place that didn't exactly encourage socializing. He was used to it. So he would toss the occasional comment, more to amuse himself than to actually start a conversation. It was what he used to do back at Manticore. Especially whenever his friend 494 had been in one of his morose moods. He'd learnt that just because he wasn't answering, it didn't mean he wanted Biggs to stop. And every now and then, his words would elicit a response. 

They were coming out of the staircase when he suddenly burst out laughing. Nicole stopped to wait for him. She didn't ask what it was, she didn't raise an eyebrow in question, she didn't even look at him as if he'd gone mad. She just stood there, with that blank expression he was getting used to. "Sorry," he said, "I just realized I hadn't told you I have a roommate. You are going to _looooove_ him." He shook his head chuckling. "Come on." She of course, glanced once more around before following him. 

"Honey! I'm ho-ome!" he bellowed as he entered, causing the man behind the computer to jump in his chair and then glare at him. Biggs grinned. "Now, Cale, what kind of welcome is that?" He asked with feigned sadness. "Can't you see we've got guests?" 

Logan glanced briefly at Nicole and then looked back at him. "Couldn't you take your little friends and entertain them elsewhere?" 

Nicole looked at Biggs for a second and then went into the kitchen, rummaging through the refrigerator and cupboards. Biggs burst out laughing. Logan would never know how close it had been. In that split second her eyes made contact with Biggs', at least thirty different ways to kill Logan had passed through them, one by one, before she decided the ordinary wasn't worth the trouble. 

Logan, of course, was looking at him like Biggs had gone down the deep end. Maybe he had. He was starting to 'get' Nicole. The human got up and headed for his room. 

Nicole joined Biggs carrying some leftover… actually, he wasn't sure what it was exactly, Logan must have cooked himself some dinner. 

"Why do you live with Eyes Only?" She asked as she sat down on Logan's chair. 

It didn't surprise Biggs that she knew who Logan was, it only took a good pair of eyes. Of course, it helped if said eyes were genetically enhanced. "Long story." As expected, she didn't ask to hear it. She did, however, start checking all the connections on the hardware. "Don't worry. It's just the comp. No access to the outside." She still kept going through the equipment for five more seconds. "You sure are methodical." He commented casually. "Wonder if you are as thorough at _everything_ you do…" 

She turned her serious gaze at him. "Does that mean you are wondering what it would be like to have sex with me?" She asked bluntly. 

He smirked. "Depends… what would your answer be if I suggested it?" He used his most lewd tone. 

She didn't hesitate. "After this is over, yes." 

Okay, that wasn't exactly the expected answer. His eyes narrowed. "Why?" He asked suspiciously. 

"Why not?" 

"Well…there is the whole lack of enthusiasm you've got going on. I don't exactly see you trying to contain your rampant passion and lust." He said sardonically. 

"I don't believe in God or any sort of higher power. I have still read the Bible, Torah, Qu'ran, Guru Granth Sahib, Bhagavad Gita, The Dhammapada …" Her tone never changed, nor did her expression. "Sex, as religion, is a very powerful force that motivates people. It is important to understand them." 

Biggs shook his head, laughing. "Well…you can always read some books on it." 

"I have. Unlike religion, sex is more physical. You can't learn to fight by reading books." She said, solemn. 

"Yeah, right." Biggs stopped laughing. "You are not trying to tell me you've never had sex, are you? Cause I can tell you right now: I am not buying." 

"I am not." She replied. "But I have lived outside Manticore since I was ten." 

*Huh?* What the hell was she talking about? Precisely the reason why it should have been easier for her to get some... action. "Meaning?" He had to ask. 

"All the contact I had was with ordinaries." 

"Ah!" He needed no more explanation. "You want to know what it is like with one of us, huh?" 

"It didn't seem to be what humans find so worth the trouble. From our physiology, I assume we must be prepared to make it a more remarkable experience." 

"Oh, yeah…" Biggs couldn't help the words from coming out of his mouth. "Definitely different." 

Gray eyes searched his before she said: "Max." 

How the hell did she…? He did his best to keep his poker face. He almost managed it. It wouldn't have been possible for a human to notice the slight dilatation of his pupils. Even for highly trained interrogators like they'd had at Manticore. It was for her. He still had to try. "What do you mean?" 

"From your words, it is evident you've been sexually involved with one of us. You were not in the breeding program – I had access to the lists. I heard what that Cindy woman told you about not keeping it in your pants. First I thought it could have been the X6, but she acts completely natural towards you. Max doesn't." 

Biggs kept his head up and started to protest. He knew it was useless, that she knew the truth. But he had to. She prevented him from speaking. 

"Heat. I understand. And that yellowish eye you had yesterday tells me you and Alec worked it out. You still have to deal with Max. Which you don't know how to do." 

He blinked. Wow. Talk about synthesis. Of course, there was also the part about the baby. Strange that she hadn't sensed that. Then he remembered. She hadn't been at Manticore. Even if she did know pregnant X5s would smell differently because of the hormones, she wouldn't know what the smell was. And it was not as if she had been around other female X5s to know the difference. 

"Anyway," he finally said, still not acknowledging anything, "we have other things to worry about right now. Like sleep. Wanna use my bedroom?" 

She didn't seem to mind the brusque shift. 

Not that he would have cared if she did. 

* * *

"Welcome back, boss." Max looked up to see a really big guy with a green face biting a cigar and smiling. She turned to look at Alec and mouthed: 'boss?'. Alec just displayed his most innocent face and shrugged. She looked at Biggs and Nicole behind him, but they were both looking at the guy on the railing. 

They had all arrived at TC at the same time. Biggs was smiling, amused at something only he knew. He seemed to do that a lot. Nicole was, naturally, standing there, completely expressionless. 

Lizard guy was still talking. "But why did you have to bring prince charming back with you?" Max blinked. Who was he talking about? Or talking to for that matter. "We were doing just fine by ourselves, Gray." Gray? Well, that certainly cleared the matter. That nickname only suited one person in the room. "I mean, I know you said it was a temporary position and all, but did it have to be _him_?" He finished in mock despair. 

"No. But it was either him or 511. They were the X5s I knew for sure were in town." 

"Why did it have to be an X5?" A guy with a lion-face that had been leaning on the door asked, his voice full of resentment. 

"Experience." Was the curt answer. 

"Why them and not you?" Luke asked, curious. 

"I was never around people. Much less transgenics." 

Max noticed none of them had mentioned her as another X5 in the city. It wasn't necessary. Max was a deserter, she had run away. She suddenly felt completely on the outside. 

At that exact moment, she felt Alec's body brush against her side. He said nothing. He didn't even look at her. It appeared to be completely casual, like he hadn't even noticed. She knew better. She had to stop herself from moving her hand to grab his. 

"All right, people, we have stuff to do and some of us, a job to go to." Alec said suddenly. After taking care of the proper introductions, he continued. "Dix, you seem to be the intellectual around here, you know medicine, right?" He acknowledged the nod. "Ok, I need you to find me anyone with medical experience so they can help you. This place was filled with labs, there must be lots of salvageable stuff. I want you to take a sample of our blood, of all of us. Not sure we'll be able to find much, but it's a start. Here!" he said, tossing some books. 

Max recognized the one she had borrowed from Logan some time ago. She was amazed thinking that that virus was all she cared about just a few months ago. Life was weird. "In case there is something we don't remember." Alec was saying, mockingly. Everyone chuckled. His tone was clearly saying 'as if'. "I'll give you the basics. Max here has some pretty weird runes that kind of popped up on her skin. It has come to our attention that some people may want to exterminate all human life via this very nasty virus. This source also suggested we, as a group, would survive it, I want to know if that's true. They also seemed pretty interested in finding her. Apparently she is the one who's 'power is hidden'. If the rest of the information is good, this would mean she is a host. Which would also explain her lack of symptoms when she was infected." He stopped, watching her horrified expression and smiled, softening his tone a little. "It's okay, it also means a cure can be synthesized out of you. From what h.. our informant has told us, it stand to reason we all have the antibodies, but maybe they can't be used. A vaccine or serum or something like that is easier extracted from the host. One of the reasons those poor monkeys disappeared from Africa even before the pulse." He shrugged. "I want to know if this... source was being straightforward with us." 

Luke stood up and took Joshua and Lyon with him to go get the necessary supplies. Dix commented finding out would take some time. 

"Well, we've got two weeks. Thirteen days to be exact, according to the runes. I want to know before that." He paused meaningfully. "Well before that." 

Everyone nodded and they moved on to discuss the supply of food for Terminal City. Transhumans had been going out through the sewers to get what they needed. But their numbers were increasing. Besides, now they had a few Xs to take care of that. No need to take those risks. It was decided that the four of them would sneak things inside during their runs. And there were also the X6s. Alec said with a little direction, even they could knock out a Kwik-E-Mart quietly. His tone was playful, directed at the girl that had just walked through the door. Max watched the blonde blush and then smile as he winked at her. Luke came back and started getting the blood samples. 

Ralph was thrilled to have them all there, and started telling them all about TC and its inhabitants. 

Joshua was the sweetest guy around and he was really strong; Mole was always growling but he wasn't really mean, Lizzie said he had been really nice to her; and then there was Dix, who knew like everything; and Luke was always smiling and being kind to everyone; Lizzie was an X6 like Joe and Regina; Joe was really cool and he knew a lot of hand-to-hand, said Alec had been his instructor once; Lizzie thought Alec was super-cute; Lyon seemed not to like Ralph, but then again he was always glaring at all the X6s; Mole had been designed like that to be able to endure long campaigns in the desert, did they know that? And Dix was..- 

"Ralph," Alec called her, interrupting the flow of words. "You need to breathe every now and then." She blushed again, but beamed when he smiled and ruffled her hair before standing up to get his blood drawn. 

Max had to bite her lips not to laugh. He didn't seem to realize it, but the girl had a major crush on him. It was a good thing Ralph was just a kid, otherwise Max didn't think she'd be taking things so lightly. Whoa! Where the hell did that thought come from? 

She watched Alec move towards Biggs and start talking to him. They seemed very intent. 

She shook her head firmly and said out loud, "Are you coming, Nicole?" before she walked out of the room. She needed some air. The other X5 followed her silently. 

* * *

Max and Nicole were walking towards what seemed to have become Command Center, each carrying two large bags filled with groceries, mostly canned food. One of the X6s came out to greet them. 

"There is a building near the limit of Terminal City Mole wants one of you to check out to see if we could use it." The brown haired girl announced. 

"Sure, I'll check it out," said Max, not like she had anything to do. She and Nicole had finished their deliveries of the day. Nicole was great at that, she would grab a lot of packages and plot a course, so that they finished their runs with a great deal of spare time to come check TC. This was the third time they'd done it that day. Normal wouldn't be expecting them until the next day. 

"No, I'll go." The taller woman said. "You stay here. Alec and Biggs shouldn't take long." 

Max resisted the urge to throw something at her, and stick her tongue out while she was at it. But she had already given up on even attempting to convince the other woman of anything that resembled easing up on the security deal. Oh, well, at least she'd be free of her for at least a few minutes. 

She walked into the building and turned to watch the two transgenics start walking away. Of course, Nicole had only begun moving after Max was inside the building. Someone should teach the woman how to lighten up. In fact… she, Max, should be the one to teach her. After all, there was no one else around, right? 

Definitely. It was her duty! A scheming smile started to spread through her face as a plan was forming in her brain. 

* * *

Alec knocked on the door in front of him one last time. He waited a few more seconds before giving up and putting the package back in his bag. Great. This meant he would have to come back. Not exactly his idea of fun. He was trying to save time and this was making it harder. Why were people not home? Did they absolutely need to have a life? And if they did, couldn't they get it on a day he wasn't supposed to deliver their packages? 

He shook his head amused at himself. He was sounding like Max. Truth was, he was grumpy cause he'd had to do all of Biggs' deliveries this time around. They had figured if each of them did the deliveries in turn, it gave the other more leeway to either go 'acquire' stuff or check on things around Terminal City. Biggs had taken the earlier route, so now Alec was in charge of keeping both their jobs. He smiled thinking that he was actually making the work of two messengers in less time than it normally took to make his own. If only Normal knew… 

Well, this one would have to wait till tomorrow. He was out of work for the day. He had a lot to do. It was unbelievable how much more clearly he could think after a good night's sleep. 

* * *

"Uhm…Max?" 

Max turned around to look at the girl calling her. She had been sorting things out in what passed for the office and was now outside another building. She had been trying to figure out if there was anything worthwhile in it. Without much luck, at that. "Yo!" She watched the girl frown in confusion and rolled her eyes. "I meant, yes?" 

"Oh, right. Nicole said if you could join her." 

"Join her? Why?" 

The girl shrugged. "She didn't give much explanation. She just said to get you." 

Max chuckled, of course she wouldn't. "All, right kid, lead the way." 

* * *

"That's the one." Regina signaled the building half a block away and then squirmed a little. 

Max watched her amused. "What?" 

"It's just that Mole said we were each supposed to clean up a room, and I haven't finished, and if him or Nicole find out, they'll give me another lousy assignment and I..-" 

"It's ok. Go back. I won't tell a soul." Max winked. 

The girl beamed. "Thanks!" and ran off. Poor kid. 

Oh yeah, Nicole definitely had one coming. What was the deal with that chick? Didn't she realize they were out of Manticore? 

She entered the building still shaking her head and looked around. The place was mostly an empty room with a couple of stairs that led to the railings on the sides. It was completely dark, except for 2 places where the setting sun managed to get through the filthy windows. There were a couple of large crates and a number of smaller boxes. Great, now where was Nicole? "Hey, What is it you wanted me to see?" She asked loudly. The voice that answered her made her blood freeze. 

"Me, 452, she wanted you to see me." 

He was standing not four feet away from her, a gun trained at her. She glanced around only to spot two other men surrounding her from different directions. No way to dodge every bullet. She took a deep breath and drawled lazily. 

"Good to see you too, Ames." 

* * *

Alec was pedaling towards Terminal City and dialing on his cell phone. He took it to his ear and groaned after a minute. 

Where the hell was Logan? It wasn't as if he had anything to do. Well, sure, he had his Eyes Only contacts, probably. But come on, for the past months every time Alec had dropped by, Logan had been in his place. Did he have to leave right now? 

He knew he was being unfair. Logan had every right to do whatever he pleased - as long as it didn't involve Max, of course. 

But Alec needed someone now. A human. Neither Sketchy nor OC would do. He needed someone that looked more … old. And with that natural confidence and arrogance. 

He reflected for a second and then dialed another number. It wasn't exactly as perfect, but it would have to do. 

* * *

Nicole watched through the window out of cold gray eyes. Max had walked right into the trap. Just as Nicole had imagined she would. The girl was too predictable. 

She watched the men surround her and tie her to a pole. Handcuffs. She didn't even try to fight them, she knew she didn't stand a chance against three guns. 

Well, nothing else for Nicole to do here. She was about to get up to head back to Headquarters when a rustle behind her caught her attention. She remained motionless, maybe whoever it was would leave without noticing her. 

"What the hell are you doing spying on Max?" 

Nicole closed her eyes for an instant. She was really looking forward to that virus killing every one of the stupid humans that walked on this planet. When her eyes opened again, nothing in her expression had changed. A second later the guy that had been on the roof of the warehouse pointed his shotgun on them both. 

This wasn't exactly according to her plan, but she would deal with it. Nothing fazed Nicole. Ever. 

She raised both her hands. She'd play along. 

* * *

Biggs was perched atop the rooftop of a three storied building looking down. He had been jumping from one construction to the next following her, making sure she didn't see him. It had been a while since his last surveillance mission, but it wasn't something you forgot. It was not the coolest kind of mission, in fact, it was one of the worse. But he'd been given the order to keep her in sight. No one had rescinded that order. So he had continued to stalk his prey. She hadn't even noticed him. 

And now here he was. He was trying to glance through one of the windows of the warehouse now. His eyes narrowed as he focused, but the window was too filthy for him to see anything. 

Nicole was crouched under the other window a little to the left, peering in. She was about to move away, probably head back to Command Center. He moved to go down to intercept and demand an explanation, but he caught another movement. Cale. What the hell was _he_ doing here? 

He saw her surprise for an instant before she masked it under her impassive face. A guy with a shotgun was immediately on them from the roof of the warehouse. He watched them both lift their hands and being led to the inside. Biggs was sure she'd find a way to land on her feet. Hell... she could have made it out of there. Sure, Logan would probably have bit it, but it wasn't like that'd bother her. She'd probably thought of some way to take advantage of this new development. Yeah, Biggs thought to himself. *That* fit the profile. 

He took out his cell phone and dialed. Alec was not going to be very happy about this. Not at all. 


	17. Gotcha! 2

A/N: to all my faithful readers and the new ones. You all make my day J And to Infie, of course, cause she rocks (and helps me write what I _mean_ ;) )! 

Tough Call

**Gotcha! (2)**

Logan stepped out of his Aztek in an alley just outside of Terminal City. He wasn't exactly sure where the transgenics could be, but he was confident he would be able to find them. 

He patted his pocket, making sure he had his gun. He didn't think he would have to use it, but it was a habit for him to carry it with him at all times lately. He had been debating whether to come or not all day. All night as well. Ever since he'd heard them last night, to be precise. 

He had been about to go to sleep, leaving Biggs and his girl friend alone, when he'd remembered he'd left some disks on the desk. They contained some information on his Eyes Only contacts. Alec had returned them to him in the morning when he brought the computer with the database. Logan hadn't been surprised that none of the disks with anything on Max or Manticore had made their way back. And he hadn't harbored any illusions that Biggs hadn't looked through these ones when he took them. But now there was someone else in there. Maybe E.O. didn't mean anything to the transgenics, but Logan had to protect his informants, their lives depended on it. 

Sure enough, the first thing the woman did was go to his desk. And.. she knew who he was too? Damn transgenics. Logan realized it had been a good thing it wasn't until the end that his hacks had gone against Manticore. All they would have had to do was send a few of these kids to scout the city for computer equipment and then look at him closely. His hacks were untraceable, but who needed a trace when they had a perfect retinal match? 

He had heard the conversation rapidly deviate into more mundane topics. He hadn't been able to leave, both fascinated and horrified by the words and the tone he was hearing. He had to remind himself these were not normal kids. With Max he tended to forget. Sure, her special abilities came in handy, but she'd spent so much on the outside that more often than not she behaved like any other troubled young woman. Even Alec was different in that aspect. He was usually annoying, and he was self-centered and a smart-mouth. No different than any other youngster. But these two? Especially the girl! There was no way anyone could hear her and not realize there was something very off about her. He had been lost in these considerations when one word – one name - froze the blood in his veins. 

Everything inside him wanted to deny it. But he couldn't. There was no other way to read what had been said. Biggs being with an X5. Max. Heat. Alec bruising Biggs when it was obvious they were friends… 

He had already been feeling bad about the way he had treated Max. But now? 

He had known, in his head, that she would not come back to him. But there had been this tiny bit of hope… He had seen Alec was serious about them, but maybe, someday, he'd get tired of playing the good guy. Alec was still very young. Especially since the problem was all over something that hadn't been a conscious choice. He had said it himself. Heat. 

But it _had_ been. It was Biggs who had been with Max. Biggs was the father of her child. 

Alec had been in the exact same situation Logan had been. The woman he loved –because there was no doubt in Logan's mind that Alec loved her, he wasn't sure for how long it had been going on, but he did- had slept with another guy. She was having another man's baby. And while Logan had been furious and insulted her, Alec had been by her side, defending her, understanding her. 

A voice in Logan's head had tried to reason that it was different. They had caught him off-guard, Max was supposed to be his girlfriend and Logan was also not as accustomed as they were to the concept of heat. Still, deep down, he knew those were all just excuses. 

Whatever ray of hope he might have been harboring died. He had thought Max and he had drifted apart because of the virus and her being a transgenic. But it was more than that. It was deeper. Whether or not Max loved Alec, whether she ended up with him or not, his actions had shown Logan the selfishness of his own. 

She deserved better. 

And he had to let her know that. Max had never been good with feelings. He owed it to her to make her see the differences in their attitudes. Knowing her, she probably wouldn't realize how rare what Alec was doing was. Plus, he still needed to apologize to her. 

So here he was, outside of Terminal City. He gathered his courage and took a step forward, glancing at the barbed wire fence and the alley beyond it. Suddenly he saw Max step from behind a building and cross the street to enter a warehouse. She was inside before he could call her, so he moved to go after her. 

That was when he saw the woman, the one that had been with Biggs the night before abruptly emerge from a shadow and jump on a ledge so that she was crouching outside a window of the building Max had gone into. She was obviously following Max. 

Logan felt a sudden surge of anger towards transgenics in general. They thought they were above everything, they had absolutely no respect for others. Not even one of their own. Well, he'd show this one differently. 

He approached her silently – courtesy of that transfusion that made him able to walk without the exoskeleton – and called her on her spying. The woman remained motionless for an instant and then she turned, cold, steely eyes glaring at him, just as a guy with a shotgun aimed at them from the roof. What was going on? The guy was obviously too old to be a transgenic. Someone had trapped Max… and now him too. The gray haired woman before him raised her hands but did not seem concerned at all. Was she confident she could overpower this guy? She didn't move to do it, though. Or was it because she knew he wouldn't hurt her. Was she with them? The guy on the roof sprang to the ground, landing smoothly. It was a distance of four meters, easily. This guy was not a normal human being. A Familiar, Logan guessed? The man motioned for them to go inside. As he entered, the scene before him left him horrified. 

Max was handcuffed to a pole with a tall light haired guy aiming a semiautomatic at her. Another guy, this one red haired, was also standing at her side, but his gun was trained on the newcomers. Ames White was standing before Max. He was in his shirtsleeves, his tie a little askew. Max's left eye was surrounded by a red halo, as if she'd just been struck. 

"Well, well, well, look who's here as well. If it isn't the national hero…" White said, the sarcasm clear in his voice, "Come, come, join us. Your little piece of filth friend was just about to tell me where my son is." He smiled coldly. 

* * *

Max's head spun to the side with the force of the blow. Damn, he was strong. And why the hell was he hitting her face? Pissed much, Ames? Well, good. If he was, he would keep her here, keep striking her. Not that she particularly enjoyed it. But the longer he kept her here, the bigger the chances of Alec coming after her. 

They would eventually realize she wasn't around. Hell, as much as she bitched about it, she was now really glad of that protectiveness of Alec's. The minute he got to Terminal City he was going to start looking for her. All she had to do was keep White angry. That shouldn't be hard. 

But she needed him to keep hitting her face. She could not afford being worried about anything else right now. As long as his aim was in the area of her head, everything would be fine. 

"You know, Ames, with all those years of selective breeding, you'd think they'd have taught you guys not to hit like girls. Come on, I'm barely gonna need to use my Maybelline to cover these." 

The punch to her left eye that followed was probably going to change the veracity of that last statement. "Where. Is. My. Son?" 

"You have a son?" She faked an astounded expression. "For real? Poor kid!" 

"Funny, 452. Where is he?" 

A ruckus at the door stopped his next blow from reaching its destination. She kept her eyes on White, not wanting to be caught by surprise by another one of his vicious punches. She watched a self satisfied smile spreading on his face as he spoke to the newcomers. 

Logan? What the hell was he doing here? And Nicole? Had she turned him in too? Wait, she was raising her hands as well. Still, she didn't seem preoccupied as she walked in their direction, followed by a not so poised Logan and the guy with a shotgun who had entered with them. 

The only other poles were on opposite ends of the room. White seemed to decide that were too far away to efficiently control them all, so he placed each one of them on either side of Max and had one of his goons pointing a gun at them. 

That was not very smart. He had to realize one guy with a gun was no match for Nicole. Maybe she wouldn't be able to outrun a bullet aimed at her from such close range, but at some point the guy would lose his concentration and then he'd be history. Unless, of course, he knew she'd not attempt anything like that because she was, in fact, on their side. But what would be the point of that? Did she truly expect Max to open up to her after all this just 'cause she was apparently trapped too? Not very fucking likely. 

She watched White go over and disarm Nicole and Logan. He then approached his redheaded cohort, and said, patting him on the shoulder and looking at Nicole, "She moves one finger, you empty your clip in his head." The guy moved so both Logan and Nicole were on his vision field. White looked at Nicole, "Any movement, girly, and the human is toast," he snarled, "We wouldn't want that now, would we?" 

"We? *I* couldn't care less." 

* * *

Biggs climbed down a fire escape the minute the guy jumped down to make Nicole and Logan go inside. He hoped there were no civilians right outside of TC, cause otherwise they would see quite a show, what with a guy walking over the fence like he was strolling in the park… Not that that would stop him. He then climbed on the warehouse's rooftop and hid behind a ventilation shaft, waiting for the guy to come back up. 

He jumped at the guy as he passed, concentrating all his strength in his arms, not wanting to take any risks. He wasn't sure exactly how strong these guys were. He didn't dwell on the all too familiar sound of a neck snapping. Good. Quite a bit more strength required than for humans, but still within his capabilities. Of course, he'd caught this one by surprise. He was sure that was not going to happen too often. 

He pried a trapdoor open and slid inside the warehouse, landing silently on an overhanging balcony. 

He heard Nicole's disdainful words as he crouched behind the railing in the opposite end of the room. She sounded completely believable. Probably because she actually didn't give a damn. She continued talking. 

"I'd kill him if I was you. Save myself the trouble of dividing my forces." 

"Is that right?" White snarled, a slight emphasis on the second word, "Wouldn't you just love for me to lose my leverage on the girly here?" 

"He is no leverage. He's human. The second time you hit him, he'll pass out. Same thing if you cut him or burn him. It's no use if she can't see him suffer. Doesn't have the same effect," was her cold response. Biggs could hear the clatter of the handcuffs against the pole as Max tried to lunge at the woman, even knowing it was useless. If looks could kill... well, the assassination game would be a whole hell of a lot easier. 

Biggs glanced around once more, but there wasn't much he could do. At least, not without risking Max getting hurt and Logan killed. Of course, if it came to it, he would move, even if it got the human killed. Logan was not anyone's priority. 

He focused on the _conversation taking place downstairs. _

* * *

"So... you're saying I should kill him and use you as leverage?" White seemed amused by the whole situation. "You look like you could handle a bit of roughing up." 

"I can. And you could. But that wouldn't do any good either. As you can see she doesn't feel very charitably towards me either. You kill him, you're in the same situation you were before, only with one less hostile in your hands." 

"I could just kill you." White smiled predatorily. 

"Yes, you could." She didn't seem concerned at all. 

Logan's brain was going on overdrive trying to figure out a way out of here. It didn't seem very likely. There were three of them against three familiars. Actually, there were two of them, he wasn't sure if he could count Nicole among them. After all, she was coldly discussing _his_ life, or rather, the end of it. 

White started pacing, his steps taking him closer to Nicole, apparently considering her words. He then started speaking in a conversationalist tone, "Your analysis is very good," he turned his back to her, "except, you left something out," his voice raised dramatically at the last word and he spun around and backhanded the gray-haired woman. The force of the impact made her head turn. Or at least it seemed that way. Logan couldn't be sure he had actually hit her, it had been that fast. When she turned her head back to look at White, there was no change in her expression indicating the smallest amount of hurt or even anger. "*I* am the one calling the shots here." He cracked his neck and returned to stand between Max and Logan. 

"As your friend here pointed out, hitting this one wouldn't be very productive." Logan watched him inch closer to him, giving him a light flick on the nose. "But then again, _he_ has the same information you do, isn't that right, 452?" He smirked, taking Logan's face in his hand, making him look at Max. "And look at those puppy dog eyes. Is he in love with a filthy, transgenic animal?" He shook his head, tsking. 

He let go of Logan's face, approaching Max again, "You think he can stand to see you suffer?" he yanked her hair, "What do you say, big guy?" He took a step away from Max and then punched her again on her nose, which started to bleed. "How many of these you think she can take?" White asked him. Logan squirmed. 

"I can take as many as you have, asshole!" was Max's answer. She was so brave. Logan's heart fell. She would take everything and never give White an inch, even if it killed her. 

White blinked, placing a hand over his heart, saying, "ouch, that hurt," before he hit her again. 

* * *

Nicole watched coldly as white hit Max again. And again. Such a waste of time. He seemed to be truly obsessed. That was not good. Obsessed people made mistakes. 

She wasn't really paying attention to the spectacle before her until she noticed Max twisting at one of the punches to her stomach to take it in her kidney. That was not normal. A good one to her stomach would steal the air from her, but one in the kidneys could do much more damage. Then she realized it. That had been the smell. She was pregnant. So _that_ was what Biggs was hiding from her last night. Interesting. 

White had moved around Max and was now focused on the small of her back. Logan was whining about not knowing anything. Well, maybe not technically whining, but it sounded like that to Nicole. 

She sighed. 

* * *

"I wouldn't do that," Max heard Nicole say matter of factly, "The bruises might make it difficult to read the runes." 

"What the HELL are you blabbing about now?" He wouldn't have paid attention. But he noticed Max's eyes open wide and Logan's gasp. Max could see he was intrigued. Damn. 

"See for yourself." Nicole answered. "On the skin of her wrist, shoulders and back." 

Max felt the fabric of her top give as he yanked hard. 

* * *

"You bitch!" Max hissed. Biggs couldn't help the smile from reaching his lips. That she was. A complete, coldhearted bitch. But what style! 

Nicole's little stunt was working perfectly so far. What she had said about Logan not being able to take the punches was right. And as much as Biggs hated seeing it, Max could. Biggs had to hand it to her, she was taking it like a real pro, only giving the occasional retort. Logan, on the other hand, was about to break. Poor guy was horrified at the beating Max was receiving. But that was no concern for Biggs. After all, Logan didn't really know anything. 

Everything was still under control so far. Except for one thing. Max was pregnant. So far the only hits had been to her face. But that was changing. 

And that was when Nicole started speaking about the scribbles. Damn it, the woman was smart. Really smart. 

* * *

Max couldn't believe her ears. That fucking bitch! White was avidly reading her 'message' now, his eyes huge, mumbling about the plans being jeopardized, his disgusting fingers trailing over her skin as he followed the different lines. 

It suddenly hit Max. He was surprised. Royally pissed off, but genuinely surprised. Nicole had known about the message even before Max and Alec. If she was working for White, he would have known too. 

But if she was on their side, why the hell was she telling him about them now? Didn't she realize that now White would know what Sandeman had been planning? 

She forced herself to think back. What had Nicole really done? By suggesting White kill Logan, she had made sure he would be kept alive. Even if the line of reasoning Nicole had used had crossed White's mind, the fact that she suggested it made it impossible for him to do it. It would seem like a weakness. 

So why would she tell him about the runes now? 

Stalling. 

She was trying to buy them some more time. And at the same time had stopped the attacks at Max's body. 

Max risked a glance at her. Her profile was turned on Max, her gray eyes focused intently on the guy aiming at Logan. Just as Max began to look away, Nicole's eyes flicked for the briefest instant at a chunk of wood on the floor about three feet away from Max, before returning to Logan's watcher. 

Max took a deep breath. All right. She would play the game as well. 

* * *

White finished re-reading all of the runes, then went for his gun. Exposing the message had bought them a few more minutes. But now the Familiar knew what the threat was. And he seemed to have decided to eliminate it. 

Biggs was about to move -he was sorry for Logan, but the loss of _his life was acceptable – when Nicole spoke again. _

"You know that's not going to help at all. You kill her, there are hundreds of others to take her place." 

White laughed. "I have tested the poison on one of your disgusting creatures, the freak survived, but got sick. This one presented no symptoms. I kill her, then all we have to do is kill the rest of you while you are down sick." He said defiantly. 

"Is that all?" Was the cold question. 

Biggs watched a muscle twitch in White's jaw. He raised his gun to point it at Max. But he wasn't sure. 

"You tested _one_ individual?" Nicole continued. When his eyes narrowed, she looked down at him. "Ames, Ames, Ames. Didn't your father try to teach you over and over again about science?" Her voice hadn't lost the coldness, but Biggs could have sworn there was a patronizing undertone in there. "One subject is not conclusive evidence. It was a transhuman, wasn't it?" When he didn't answer, she moved on. "Time, Ames, time. The newer models are more advanced." 

"And I am supposed to believe you?" 

"No, you are not." 

Biggs had to fight back the urge to burst out laughing. She was so good at that. She had driven them crazy the night before. Biggs was glad to see she was having the same effect on White. 

"How do you know anything? There wasn't anything on Manticore charts." Oh, yeah, definitely getting to him. He was giving away way too much information. Well, his loss. 

"I got it from the source." At his growl, she added, "That's right. Doctor Sandeman." 

Biggs frowned. Why tell him the name so soon? He didn't believe it was a slip up. What else did she have up her sleeve? Well, as long as it kept White entertained, it was okay with Biggs. He was interested, though. 

"Again, I should believe you, because…?" White was asking. 

"Want to know my name?" 

White was debating whether to ask or not. He lost. "What is it?" He asked Max. 

Nicole nodded imperceptibly and Max said. "Well, most of the times I call her 'bitch'. But she also answers to Nicole." Her tone was belligerent, if slightly bored. 

"Want to know who named me?" White's face was turning red. "That's right. He did. I think it was your mom's name... wasn't it?" 

His mom's na..- _Holly shit!_ Biggs could see Max's eyes opening wide to match White's. Even Logan's jaw dropped. 

And the expressions on the other two goons! It was well worth the trouble. So White was Sandeman's son? That was what she was implying, right? Oh, boy, this was too good! He was smiling now. Useful information _and_ Max was not getting beaten anymore. That was it…. Nicole was officially his hero. He suddenly turned serious and nodded to himself. Time for business. 

--------------------------------- 

"Oh, puh-lease! Don't tell me _you_ are Sandeman's son!" Max was rolling her eyes. "Now I get it! I mean, seriously, after seeing what selective breeding produced…no wonder he left the cult and made us!" 

"Shut up!" White hit her with the butt of the gun, splitting the skin. Blood began to flow down her cheek. "What else do you know?" He approached Nicole. 

"Everything." She said coldly. He aimed his gun at Nicole's forehead. She didn't flinch. 

"I know all about the cult. I know all about the plans." 

Biggs' entire body was tense as he placed one hand on the railing. He raised his eyes. Just three more seconds… _Keep talking hon_… She did. 

"And I know the dates." 

White growled and stepped closer to her, placing the cold metal against her temple. "You will tell me everything you know, _Nicole_, or I'll fill your repulsive little head with lead." 

Suddenly Biggs appeared, jumping over the balustrade and landing beside the blond guard. He gave a cheeky grin. "Well, normally I wouldn't mind, but she and I got a date. Do you know how hard those are to come by these days?" 

That was when all hell broke loose. 

* * *

Alec had been riding his bike when he received Biggs' call, some fifteen blocks from Terminal City. He'd never ridden so fast in his entire life. 

He supposed he should be glad this hadn't happened the day before. At least today they'd been ready - not as ready as they could have been, but not caught completely off guard. But he wasn't glad. That bitch! 

He'd had to make some arrangements, but he did them over the phone. He practically flew by Logan's car, ditched the bike and soared over the fence. He wasn't worried about any guards on the outside. If there had been any, 511 would have taken care of them. Two seconds later he was crouching beside the same window Nicole had been using before. One look inside was sufficient to take in everyone's position, including 511's overlooking the floor. His eyes hardened momentarily as he saw Max, but they went back to efficient coldness immediately. He could not let his mind worry about the bruises in Max's face right now. 

His window was four meters to the South of the main door. Both White and the two guys with him had their backs to him. He silently levered the window open and slid inside, White was too busy pounding on Max to notice – Careless! – and the other two had their eyes fixed on Nicole –well, even though _that_ was smart, it was definitely bad tactics-wise. Well, their mistake. He wondered briefly why White hadn't killed one of them yet. Then he started listening to Nicole's words, and understood. A feral glint shone in his eyes. That was the good thing about working with pros. 

He moved closer, sticking to the shadows, his back plastered to the wall, until he was behind the crate two meters to the right of Logan. He looked up seeking Biggs. He was ready. The guy nearest Logan was, of course, the biggest problem. Nicole's distraction had been good enough so far to allow Alec to move. But now they needed the guard to look away from her, so he wouldn't shoot Logan when she moved. 

Alec made a sign and watched Biggs nod. Now they just needed to find the exact moment to..- Before he could make the signal, 511 was already in the air. The second he started speaking, all hell broke loose. 

The faces of the three Familiars turned to look at 511. Max grabbed the pole she was handcuffed to and used it to slide down, her feet pushing forward to kick the piece of wood on the floor which flew into the hands of the red haired guy near Logan, knocking them aside. 

Alec moved at top speed to knock Logan to the ground. The bullet flew over them, completely deviated. He grabbed Logan by the jacket and pushed him to the side, where he would be protected by the wooden crate. He turned as he heard the next gunshot leaving Red's gun. This time, it was aimed straight at him. 

Nicole took advantage of the split second White looked at Biggs. She placed both her hands on his gun arm, twisted hard and left herself fall, her legs entangling with White's and sending his crashing to the ground. The piece went flying, landing several feet away. She rolled, kicking him in the head before he had a chance to recover, then jumped to her feet. White immediately followed suit and they started circling each other. 

Biggs elbowed the blond guy hard in the face, his other hand grabbing the hand with the gun and pulling down as his knee came up swiftly. The weapon fell as the wrist bones collapsed. Biggs caught it and pushed the blond hard. When the guy was a few feet away, Biggs fired a round into his head. "Bye bye, loser." 

He turned and moved towards Max. He handed her the semiautomatic – he still had the shotgun from the guy on the roof dangling at his back - and started working on her handcuffs. He never saw the disgust in her eyes as she glanced at the weapon. 

Alec barely had time to move aside and down. The bullet entered the flesh of his upper arm, and a burning heat to spread down the entire limb. He ignored it as he twisted, changing the direction of his movement as he blurred towards Red. He stopped an inch away from him, using his left shoulder to hit the guy's chin. His left elbow jammed hard into the guy's stomach. Alec spun around him, coming on the other side to grab the arm with the gun and kicking the guy's knee with all his strength. The knee gave with a satisfying crack, but the guy didn't fall. He just smiled at Alec and backhanded him hard. Alec stepped back, still holding the arm with his left hand, his foot going for the same knee again. At the same time his injured right arm went for the gun at the small of his back. It wasn't moving as fast as he hoped. Red landed a good punch to Alec' s jaw before the transgenic managed to bring the gun around. He clenched his teeth but still pulled the trigger. He watched the bullet penetrate the Familiar's head, right between his eyes. As the body started to fall limp, he shot again, this time at the heart. He panted heavily. 

That was when he heard the semiautomatic go off again. He spun around once more his eyes wide at the sight before him. 

Nicole feinted an attack with her right arm, her left leg launching at White's midsection. He parried both blows, his left arm catching hers and yanking. His knee went for her stomach. She twisted, avoiding the knee. She didn't try to hit him, knowing he'd feel no pain. Instead she used the arm that was holding her as leverage to jump, twisting around it in the air so that she landed with both her knees in his hunched back. He fell face first on the ground. Nicole felt her arm being yanked from its socket. She knew it was going to happen, the movement too unnatural for it not to, and had been prepared for it. It still took her breath away for an instant. The impact had freed her arm, but White took advantage of her moment of distraction and spun on the ground, pushing her to the side. Hard. She landed in a heap. White was standing at her side before she could get up. She watched him aim the gun he had lost before at her. How had she missed they were so near to where it had landed? He was too close for her to dodge the shot. She watched him smirk and then point the gun away from her at someone else. Before she could begin to turn her head, his eyes opened wide in shock as three shots of the semiautomatic pierced the flesh of his thighs and stomach. His shot went completely astray. She rolled quickly and grabbed the gun from him as he fell backwards. 

She then turned and saw Max's horrified expression. 

Max jumped into a crouching position by the pole. She watched Alec push Logan to the side and then try to dodge a bullet. She winced as it hit him, but he was immediately moving towards the shooter. A movement to her left caught her eye and she turned to watch Biggs approaching her. She stood up and he stuck the gun into her hands. She wasn't even able to express her repulsion, he was already working on her handcuffs. Besides, not like he would appreciate it. Her eyes went to Nicole who was .. flying over White's head? to land on his back, making them both fall on the ground; then to Alec – who was breaking his opponent's knee –, before they swept back to the other X5 who was.. on the floor White aiming at her. Before she could shout at Biggs to do something he changed his aim towards Alec, whose back was turned to him. Max didn't hesitate. She fired a round at White's legs. 

It wasn't until she heard the shot whiz past Alec, very much off track, that she realized what she'd done. Her eyes opened wide and she was vaguely aware of the gun slipping from her fingers as she started trembling. 

Biggs was cursing under his breath at the stupid lock. He'd always had a lot of trouble with handcuffs –meaning it took him a few tenths of a second longer than Alec to open them. As he finally heard the click of the mechanism unlocking, Max's body went stiff, then she fired the gun he'd given her. Well, that should be that last of the bad guys going down, he had heard Alec's gun fire a moment before. He turned around with a smile on his lips when he felt Max's body beside him start to tremble. He caught the weapon fifty centimeters above the ground. 

_What the hell…?_

He watched Alec look at Nicole, making sure she had White under control, and then walk towards Max. He nodded at Biggs to go help the other transgenic. His eyes were cold and expressionless, the way Biggs was used to seeing them on missions. But right before he was out of Biggs' line of vision, they turned into a storm of emotion as he placed his uninjured hand on Max's bruised cheek. 

She had shot White. 

Only after he heard the bullet whizzing over him and watched Nicole secure White's gun, did he allow the thought to come to the front of his mind. 

Max had shot someone. 

To save him. 

He didn't realize he had moved until he was by her side, but he did remember to order Biggs to go help Nicole. He warily placed a hand in her cheek. His eyes focused on hers as she finally stopped trembling and looked up at him. He released the breath he had been holding and leaned forward to place a soft kiss on her forehead. She looked so shaken, so shocked. But she was going to be okay. His good arm went around her shoulders and she pressed herself against him for a second. He'd been so scared for her. The rational part of his brain had known nothing was going to happen to her, that Biggs was there, and he wouldn't let Max get killed. But that was just a part of his mind. He took a deep breath and released her, smiling fleetingly and mouthing a thank you before he turned around to face White. 

His eyes changed completely, going from dark green to almost blue as he coldly looked at the only Familiar still alive in the room. 

He was bleeding profusely and couldn't sit on his own. Biggs and Nicole had moved him so that his back was to the crate Logan had been hiding behind. Alec barely registered the human who had silently risen to his feet and moved out of the way. Smart move. 

A slow smirk spread on his face as he stepped closer. 

"We meet again, Ames." He said, no inflection in his voice. "Too bad you don't have that much time to talk, seeing as you are … er… dying. And what do you know? You'll also miss the doom of the human race." He shook his head sadly, "Oh, wait," he raised his head, "no you won't." He smiled coldly. "Your _daddy_ made sure of that." 

"You.. will… not.. win." White said, his voice barely a whisper, but the glare of hatred in his eyes undimmed. 

"What was that? Can't hear you? Oh, you thinking of your little mole?" He said condescendingly. "See, Ames, you made a little mistake. Well, actually it was worse than that. Apparently your selective breeding also causes selective memory problems. I mean, otherwise, how do you explain one of your men 'forgetting' to tell you that one of the kids they had trapped got away?" He watched satisfied White's fury increase. 

"Piece.. of.. scum." White sputtered. 

Alec smirked. "I'd love to stay and chat but I got stuff to do and a prisoner to interrogate." 

"She'll.. never..tell..anything." 

Alec flashed him a very cold smile that said more than any words could have, right before he lifted his left arm and fired his gun. 

"_I_ know how to do my job." 

* * *

Regina was walking near the entrance of Terminal City the X5s usually used. She was trying to look busy by picking up some garbage from the floor. She had picked and dropped the same one piece over ten times already. Where was 494? She needed to keep track of him. And give him a false lead if necessary. 

But he wasn't arriving. 

She heard a sound and turned to look. Maybe her hearing wasn't as good as that of the beasts here, but her smell was just as good. Or even better. Not all Familiars had it so developed. But Regina did. She immediately realized the person approaching was human. 

She walked closer to the wall to hide. It was what a transgenic would do. 

The woman, however, remained standing just outside the fence, not three feet away from her. She was a pretty blonde, her hair cut short, big clear eyes, a very arrogant profile. She looked around, very discreetly, then spoke in a whisper. "From my mother before me, to my daughters." 

Regina immediately snapped to attention. She repeated the code sentence and added, "What can I do for you, sister?" 

"Your mission here is over," the woman said. She didn't give Regina time to reply. "Follow me." She turned around and started walking towards her car. Regina glanced back once again and then followed suit. 

Asha smiled briefly as she heard the girl follow her. 


	18. Subornation

A/N: to all my faithful readers and the new ones. You all make my day J And to Infie, of course, cause she rocks (Just look at that title!)

****

Tough Call

Subornation

Regina got in the car after one last look around. It was parked behind a corner that obstructed the view from Terminal City. The young blonde woman behind the wheel made a movement of her head, signaling for Regina to duck down. She obeyed, sinking low into the feet compartment of the passenger's seat, wrapping her arms around her knees.

It was only after driving some blocks that the other woman turned her head slightly and said sternly. "There is much that needs to be clarified."

"Yes, ma'am." Regina resisted the urge to frown. That was something she had learnt living with those monstrous creatures. How to keep her face impassive. Familiars were very good at deception – they'd been practicing it for countless years – but no one was as good at hiding their emotions as those freaks.

The slender woman beside her remained completely serious. After a few more minutes of driving Regina had to ask. "Is an attack going to take place tonight, ma'am?" The blonde just looked at her. Regina squirmed, but she continued speaking. She was young, and very low on the command chain, but she was not stupid. This was highly irregular. "Otherwise I don't understand. I had a very good cover, ma'am. No one suspected me. I could have kept it up, even after today."

The pale eyes bore into her. "Today was not in our plans."

"Ma'am?"

"This entire mission was not supposed to be." 

"What? What is going on?" Regina was getting really nervous by now. "Who are you?"

"You can call me ma'am. And I'll call you... 809. That was the name you were using back there, wasn't it?"

"Regina. 809 was my designation."

"Very well, _Regina_. You were placed here to impersonate X6-809 who was captured and eliminated by one of the scouting teams. You bear a very slight resemblance to the transgenic, and your height, build and coloring are appropriate. All of this accurate so far?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Except for one thing," she shot Regina a grave look, "the Conclave did not provide consent for this mission."

"What?"

"It was being considered. But some members of our family decided to go ahead with it, without waiting. While this may be considered good initiative - I do believe the timing was right - this _individuals_ might have been acting according to an agenda of their own." 

A heavy silence permeated the air in the car. A few minutes ticked by before Regina finally found the courage to speak again. "Am I being accused of something?" Something like defying the Conclave, perhaps? She knew only too well what the punishment for such a crime was. 

The blonde did not answer for a few minutes. Then she just said: "That is what I am here to evaluate."

* * *

The sound of Alec's shot echoed on the walls of the warehouse. Only after the last remnant of the reverberation faded away did he slowly let his left arm fall to his side.

He looked at the man lying slumped against the crate one last time. He felt nothing. He replaced the gun at the small of his back, this time, slightly to his left. The simple, automatic gesture reminded him of his hurt arm. _Idiot,_ he mentally called himself as it started hurting anew. He once again forced the pain back. It was not important right now.

When he raised his eyes again neither of the transgenics was standing by White's limp body anymore. Nicole was kneeling beside the red haired guy Alec had killed first, checking him for more weapons. Biggs had moved to the nearest window, the shotgun that had been previously hanging at his back now in his hands. Alec watched him squint his eyes as he searched the street outside.

He took a deep breath and turned to face Max.

She was still standing where he had left her. She looked completely lost and small, just standing there. Her eyes were fixed on him as he moved towards her. Most of her face was turning blue with bruising and a trail of blood was visible on her cheek.

"Max?" he asked softly. "It's okay, we are safe now."

"I .. I shot him. I shot him and I killed him." Her eyes were opened wide, clinging to his.

"No you didn't. I did." He said softly.

"Damn it, Alec. Do not patronize me," she said through gritted teeth, the frightened, lost expression vanished from her eyes as she glared at him. "We both know he would have died anyway."

Alec blinked at the sudden change but his shock gave way to amazement and a deep sense of pride for her. He nodded seriously. "You are right. He would have."

The fight seemed to desert her, her shoulders relaxing imperceptibly. "You came for me," she said softly.

"Yeah..." was the vague reply. Suddenly he smirked. "Your regular knight in shining armor... You ended up saving my butt. Again." His voice was thick with self-mockery. He turned serious. "Thank you Max."

They looked into each other's eyes for a few more seconds before the beginnings of a smile started tugging at Max's lips. "You're welcome. 'twas the least I could do. Who would I blame for things if you're not around?"

He shook his head, impressed again, and smiled back at her. He knew that would not be the end of it, and that she would have to deal with what she'd done. Hell, she was still trembling, but she was being so brave right now... his Max was a tough girl. "You are amazing, you know that?" he murmured softly as his lips brushed lightly against hers. He took a step back and laughed. 

"What?" she asked defensively.

He bit his lip and then announced unceremoniously, "You look like hell."

Her eyes sparkled but she faked an outraged voice. "How dare you? Besides, not like you look so hot yourself..." she said, hitting him playfully on the shoulder. His right shoulder. He paled for a second. Her eyes opened wide as she remembered.

"You were shot!" she accused him.

"Er... sorry?" he said wryly, wriggling his eyebrows.

"You fool! What the hell do you think you're doing, fooling around when you've got a bullet in your arm?" She moved to his side, carefully taking his jacket off, her eyebrows furrowed. "I need to get it out."

Alec half smiled at her concern but said: "Not now," turning to move away, only to be jerked back as her fingers tightened their grip on his wrist. "Ouch!" he glared at her, "Injured guy here, remember?"

"Then keep the hell still. Bullet needs to be removed." She mused, already having taken his knife from his jacket pocket. "I need fire," she announced.

Alec's protests were stopped by the sardonic look on his friend's face as he tossed his lighter to Max. He raised his chin and glared at Biggs, which only seemed to amuse him even more.

He resigned himself to Max's treatment of his wound, biting his lip as the heated surface of the knife touched his skin. 

>HR> 

Max winced when she felt Alec's body stiffening as she started prodding inside the wound. She was doing it as carefully as possible, but there was no way to avoid the pain. At least, not without some anesthetic. 

She needed to take his mind off it. Right.

"How did you get here so fast?" She asked him. 

"Huh? Oh, well, Biggs called me."

"Right. And how did _he_ find out so fast?"

"He was following her." He gritted.

Max frowned. She turned to Nicole. "Yeah, I am still not quite clear why you led me to White." She said accusingly. 

"I didn't." She answered in her usual monotone. Which only earned her a glare from the brunette.

Alec made a short signal for Biggs to intervene. "Maybe I can bring some light into this." The dark haired X5 said lightly. "The 'her' Alec was referring to was not Nicole." Max face told him that had not been enlightening at all, "Nicole appeared here cause she was following you. It is her job to be with you everywhere." 

"But... no she wasn't, she is the one who sent for me here. And who is the 'her' you're talking about?"

"Max is right. I was not following her. I, and I presume you as well," Nicole said looking at Biggs, "was following Regina." 

Max frowned. "Regina? The kid? The X6?" Biggs' nod confirmed it. "Oh, so she is the one who set this up? But why didn't White get you first?" she asked the other girl, and then shook her head. "And what on earth made you all suspect her enough to follow her?"

"White didn't get me because she didn't bring me here. She led me to another building." 

Max let out an exasperated snort and looked at Alec as she finished bandaging his arm. "Can I punch her lights out?" She asked with in a conspiratorial whisper, one that she knew Nicole would hear anyway. 

Alec only smiled briefly, before he raised a finger as he took out his cell phone and dialed. "Dix? Alec. Is everything set? Good." He closed the connection and smiled coldly. "Well, we are going to get her good." 

* * *

The woman's cell phone rang. She retrieved it in a graceful movement and after looking at the display answered: "Fenos'tol." 

Regina's ears prickled up, but she could not hear what was being said on the other side. Suddenly the blonde stiffened. She looked really pissed off at what she was hearing. "Where?" she asked. After a nod she said. "Very well. Fenos'tol." 

She turned icy eyes at Regina and inquired: "Was your contact Ames White?" Regina nodded, her eyes uncertain. "You better tell me all there is to know, if you don't want to be caught in his fallout."

* * *

Alec dialed yet another number and, after saying a few words he raised his cell phone, making a gesture for the others. None of them got close enough to hear. 

They didn't need to.

* * *

"..and then White told me to be on the lookout for X5s. Especially 494 and 452. He gave me pictures of them. I was to contact him as soon as I saw them. First there was another X5. A female one. I don't know her designation. She goes by Nicole. Then came another one. A male. 511. And that same afternoon I spotted 494. This was three days after I got here. He didn't see me. I was far away. But I saw him. And got confirmation of his identity from one of the X6s as well. I contacted White. He said he'd prepare a set up right within the limits of Terminal City. That 452 was too important for the cause. I was to bring her alone. The opportunity presented itself today. The freak in charge told me to send Max and Nicole to check out a building. He said he wanted Xs to do it, cause it was near the limit and people outside might see. I asked one of them. Nicole offered. So I took her to the building the transgenic wanted checked. Then I came back and told 452 that Nicole needed her."

Asha remained impassive the entire time. Alec had explained some things to her. And he was listening on the other end of the phone call she had never really ended. It was really hard to keep from smiling. For all their superior airs, these familiars were not all that they thought themselves to be. Asha was sure Max or Alec would have realized the phone hadn't been hung up. After all, they'd been trained to notice such details.

"I led her into proximity of the building, pointed it out to her and headed back to headquarters. I was supposed to wait for 494 and distract him as long as I could, to give White and the others more time to get 452 out for interrogation and testing." The girl continued, trying to demonstrate that they'd thought of maintaining her cover. And Asha had to admit, the plan had been pretty good. If someone had by any chance seen her, they'd vouch she'd signaled the building for Max but hadn't gone in. They'd suspect the other transgenic, the one that had supposedly called for Max. And if something went wrong, she could always claim she knew nothing. It was her word against that other woman Nicole. And who would suspect a kid like this? No one. Well, almost no one. She wasn't so sure Alec wouldn't have, even if he hadn't known beforehand that the kid was a traitor. She smiled to herself thinking how she herself had been deceived by that hazel-eyed devil. Her first impression of him had been that of a coldhearted, cynic, calculating soldier. But then, she'd been deluded by those charming ways of his and influenced by Logan's and Max's opinions. She still thought he was calculating in a selfish, egocentric way, but she'd also fallen for his easygoing, lazy act. 

His call had surprised her earlier that afternoon. She hadn't heard anything from them in a while, nor from Logan. He had left a message for her, telling her he was okay after the destruction of his apartment, but that had been all. 

She had immediately agreed to Alec's plan. She owed them from the time when they'd saved her and the rest of the S1W. Besides, they were kind of friends, weren't they? In a… weird sort of way.

He had explained the situation to her. She had to pass for a member of this cult. All she had to do was act superior and not talk much or give any sort of explanations and she'd be fine. What had really caught her of guard was the quickness of his next call. Not half an hour had passed when he called again to tell her she had to make her move. He'd given her the number of another guy, one with a gruff, raspy voice that kept her appraised of where her 'target' was.

She had been wondered what had gone wrong until Alec called her again just now, telling her to not say anything but to act angry. He told her everything was all right. And that she should press the matter. He'd told her he'd mute his own phone and that she should get the girl to start talking. Then he'd given her an address to take the girl after she was done talking.

Asha drove on. She tossed another cold glance in the girl's direction, just for good measure.

* * *

After Regina stopped talking Alec turned to Nicole. "What made you suspect?"

"Ralph's chatter this morning. She spoke of everyone. She would not have kept quiet about something as important as recognizing this alleged 809, especially since she _had_ seen her, because she mentioned Regina in her talk."

Max noticed Alec's and Biggs' nods. She frowned again. "Well, what about that?"

Nicole and Biggs just looked at her. Alec clarified for them, "Max didn't know her designation." And to her, he said, "Remember when we met Ralph and the rest of the kids that time? You never asked for their designations. As a matter of fact, neither did I, and I interrupted them when they started giving them to me, but not before two of them had said them. One of them was 787, Bullet. The other was 809." 

"Fixit?" Max asked cautiously. He nodded. A sad look overcame her as she thought of the implications of that. She had known after Alec had told her about the rest of the kids that it was very likely they were all dead, but knowing it was an entirely different thing. She tossed an icy glare at the Familiar she had shot before, White. She took a deep breath and looked at the others again. "How did you know the designation?" She asked Nicole.

"Ralph told us when we found her in the woods so that we could go look for them."

Max nodded. 

"Ralph told me as well," Biggs said, "and when I first came to Terminal City we were introduced and I then told Alec. I figured he'd want to tell Ralph."

"He gave me the description and it matched, but somehow I thought it was very unlikely that two of them had escaped the Familiars." Alec shrugged and turned to Biggs, "Help me rearrange things, will you?" The question was, of course, rhetorical. He knew Biggs would. They started shoving the bodies to the side.

"Alec!"

He turned to look at Max's exasperated face. "Oh, sorry. Well, when I came here, I looked around. I only found one X6 that matched the description. I saw her from afar, but there was no question. She was not Fixit. I knew I was forgetting something yesterday. But after a good night's sleep," he smiled at her sheepishly at that, "I remembered what it was. This so called Regina. So when we came here, and especially after Ralph's little speech, I talked to Biggs and we took turns keeping an eye on her." He said. 

"There was no time to tell you, we went separate ways all day. Plus, I never thought they would do something like this so soon. According to Dix, she'd only been here two days. The logical thing would have been to gather some more information before making any move. I guess White was just more messed up than the rest of them. He was too obsessed with his kid. Should have thought of that." He shook his head. 

"Of course, a one man tail is not good enough. She must have contacted White without us realizing." He shook his head, his eyes hardening. "Biggs watched her greet you two and then leave with Nicole. He figured you'd be safe cause you were inside headquarters. I guess it's what you figured as well." He turned his cold eyes towards Nicole. She straightened her spine but didn't look repentant. "You should have known I had her covered." He said, looking her in the eyes.

"If I hadn't gone, she would have." Was the curt reply, her head motioning towards Max.

Alec smirked lightly. "Well, you might have a point there." Max seemed to choose that exact moment to discover how interesting her shoelaces were and Alec chuckled. "Anyway, as you heard, she led Nicole somewhere else and then came back for you. Biggs followed her back and saw you go with her." He paused, looking at her pointedly.

"Well, how was I supposed to know... not like I knew the girl's designation. And she said Nicole wanted me to go and had offered no explanation. That sounded very much like her, why would I suspect anything?" She countered.

"Touché." He conceded. "The rest is history. Biggs saw you walk in. Then he saw Nicole and Logan get captured, then he called me. And that was pretty much it." He shrugged. Then he frowned and turned around looking for Logan, as if he'd just remembered he was there. "I still am not sure what _you_ were doing here." The human was standing a few feet away, the amazed expression still on his face as he gazed from one to the other. It took Alec a couple of seconds to realize what the wariness was all about. Of course, some people –as in the rest of the human race who was not transgenic or Familiar – would find it a bit odd that they were calmly discussing things after having just shot three people, been beaten blue, taken a bullet and having been betrayed. Well, they weren't 'some people'. He raised an expecting eyebrow at Logan, tapping his foot for effect.

"I was looking for Max." Logan finally said. He seemed to want to leave it at that, but four pairs of eyes were unrelentingly fixed on him. Alec's were narrowed, Biggs' curious and slightly mocking, Nicole's cold and Max's... well, Max's were difficult to decipher with the all the blueness and the swelling. "I... I wanted to apologize to her." No one seemed to take that explanation as sufficient. He sighed. "I'd made some assumptions that I reali..- no, learned last night were not true. I also said some very nasty things," he glanced at Alec briefly, "to both of you. They were uncalled for." He swallowed. It was not easy for him. He shook his head. "Anyway, I saw Max walk in here, and then I saw _her_ chasing her. I know she said why she was here _now_, but weren't _you_ surprised to see her there? Especially after you saw her being led somewhere else?" He asked Biggs, emphasizing the words, glad at having found something else to talk about.

"Not really." Biggs shrugged. "I mean, I was watching the kid, but I knew she'd be following."

"Why?" Logan asked.

Biggs looked at him, his eyes clearly expressing what he thought of the question. "Well, she was supposed to watch over Max. I knew she wouldn't neglect her duties. It's just not in her nature. After what I heard Regina say... It was what I would have done. Pretend to go along and then double back." He raised his shoulders again. "You, on the other hand, I had not been expecting." Logan had to look back down. "And neither had she." Biggs smirked tauntingly.

"It was unexpected." Nicole conceded. "But proved to be useful. Delayed things."

Max was biting her lip. "Okay here is what I don't understand, how in the world did they expect to sneak this ... _kid_, for lack of a better word ... into Terminal City to pose as one of us? It was obvious she would be discovered sooner or later."

"Not really. They knew the rest of the kids that were originally with her were dead. Or at least they thought so. Someone neglected to inform that one of the kids had disappeared into the river." His tone said everything he wasn't saying about the Familiars' discipline. 

"Well, but even if Ralph had died, what about the rest?"

"Well, they had no way of knowing you and me had run into them. Besides, you didn't even know her designation anyway. It was a pretty good plan."

"What about the rest of her unit?" Max continued.

Biggs looked at her weirdly. "Her what?"

"Her unit."

Biggs looked at Alec, who just shrugged. "She always talks about the others that escaped with her as either her siblings or her unit. Apparently they spent a lot of time together back at Manticore."

Max looked at them confused. "What do you mean I al..-?"

"Really? That's quite we..-" Biggs said at the same time

"Maybe I can explain." Nicole interrupted reluctantly. They all turned to her. "It was in the records. Max belonged to a special group back at Manticore. It was Lydecker's personal project. He maintained that we would work best as teams, developing the bonds that have made the best military forces. The rest of the military and scientists disagreed. They said we were not to be allowed to socialize. Their position was that since relationships depend on feelings anyway, and we were not capable of those it would be useless. In the end Lydecker was allowed to experiment with a small group and they trained as a unit, completely detached from the rest of us."

They all just stared at her. 

Max finally spoke. "So that's why Deck was so obsessed with us." She said quietly, almost a murmur. "It was _very_ personal to him." Then she looked up at the rest of them, her eyes sad. "You mean... you didn't have a unit? But... how did you train?"

"Training was individual. They put us in groups for the exercises, but it was always a competition. The last ones, or the ones that lost or won the least points were punished." Said Nicole. "Talking with others was also forbidden."

"But...what about sleeping time? Didn't you talk to each other then?"

Alec had been absorbing all this information. It explained a great deal, and lots of things began to make more sense. Max's question brought him out of his thoughts. "Hardly. We slept in individual rooms. You remember the one you had when we first met? Didn't you find that odd?"

She nodded. "I thought it was just me, cause I had escaped before. Or maybe because we were ...grown up. I even thought maybe they had decided to keep you separated after.. after the escape."

The faces of the other three transgenics turned darker at the mention of the escape. "It was even worse after that." Alec said distantly. "But we had all learned by then that we were by ourselves. The X7s were put together, because they function as a hive. But not us."

Max was having a hard time assimilating it all. She looked at the serious faces in front of her. She had no trouble reconciling Nicole to the idea of solitude. But the other two? "Wait a minute. You two," she looked at the men, "you were friends. You told me so, Alec."

Alec looked briefly at Biggs and the ghost of a smile touched his lips. "Missions." He just said.

Biggs smiled in reminiscence. "Some missions required several individuals. So they had to send more than one of us." 

"They usually didn't use the same people for more than one mission together. We didn't go on many of them. But we were good. Very good." Alec said cockily. Max was so glad to see his trademark smirk back on his face, she didn't even comment on his arrogance.

"The point is, it was not very likely anyone would recognize her. Especially being an X6. After the 09 fiasco, socializing was even more frowned upon. And they were never sent on missions. Not even X5s knew all the others." Nicole said.

"Except in cases like him." Biggs said with a mischievous twinkle in his eye looking at Alec, who glared at him. Biggs blinked innocently. "Why, I meant that you were sometimes sent to train the younger kids on hand to hand, whatever did you think I meant?"

"Funny."

"Thought it was." Biggs said with a cheeky grin.

"Okay, enough of this," Alec turned serious again, "they'll be here any minute now." His eyes sought out the human's. "Logan, buddy, I am going to need your help."

* * *

As Asha and Regina entered the warehouse an eerie silence was hanging in the air. It was already dark and only the beam of a flashlight pierced the blackness that had claimed the empty room. 

As they approached the light they started to make out the shape of a man holding it. He was tall, his hair was short and he wore glasses. 

Asha stopped walking and said distinctively: "Fenos'tol."

"Fenos'tol." He didn't look at them as he answered in a voice that was just above a whisper. "Is that her?"

"Yes."

He asked Regina to repeat what she'd already told the other woman. After she was finished, he turned his head and then made a movement with his hand. The ray fell upon a spot on the floor, near a wooden crate. It was unmistakably a bloodstain. The light moved until it reached another such stain. "They are gone." He murmured softly. And then looking back at Regina he added, "Three fine, proud members of a family lost because of the madness of one. Somehow, the transgenic escaped. Maybe on her own, probably with the aid of more of them. And why? All because brother White felt that finding out about his son, who was probably dead anyway, was more important than taking this specimen to our facilities for investigation."

Alec crouched by the railing on the opposite side of the room from the opened window – he had to make sure he was upwind of the Familiar; the ones they had killed earlier hadn't smelled him, but he wasn't taking the chance that this one would. He smiled to himself. Logan was really getting into it. He had just used the exactly correct mixture of disdain, coldness and sadness. Asha wasn't doing so bad either. Of course, Regina would not be able to see her, but she was maintaining a perfectly unmoving hard expression. 

And Regina was buying it all. He had seen her eyes grow huge at the sight of the blood. _Learning you Familiars are not undefeatable after all, are you?_ He thought, twisting his lips. 

"This is what happens when individual agendas are put before the good of our Family." Logan shook his head in a grand gesture once more before abruptly turning around. "There is nothing left to do here. You will be sent to the conclave for debriefing." He announced and turned as if to walk out of the place. "We have wasted a very good opportunity."

Regina looked at him wide-eyed, but suddenly sprang to life. "Wait, sir."

"Yes?" The exasperated tone was a piece of art.

"Maybe the opportunity isn't wasted." She said softly. "They still have no way of knowing it was me. Maybe I can stay and still provide good intel."

The man and woman looked at each other and then back at her. They said nothing, clearly waiting for her to continue.

"I just showed the building to her from like a block away. And it was a similar alley to the one I sent the other transgenic to. I can say I got confused, or she entered the wrong building or something like that." Regina offered. "I would report my findings to you." 

At that last bit the man twisted his head to the side, as if thinking. The blonde looked at him and nodded. "This could prove very useful." The woman said. He nodded back. They seemed to have reached an understanding. 

"We could use you as you say, but there would be more to it than just intelligence."

Regina frowned.

"Very, well. You may stay. And you'll continue to report to your contact – they'll assign someone now that White is dead." 

"Sir?"

"We want to know if White was acting on his own, or if there are others who deny the ways of our ancestors." After a meaningful pause he continued. "You will report whatever information you can gather to one of us first and then relay it to the rest." He glowered down at her. "You are being entrusted a very important mission. Far more so than any other. The future of our Family could be up to you. Do you think you can take that responsibility?"

Regina took a deep breath. "Yes, sir!"

"You will go back now. Running. Say you realized you led 452 to the wrong alley and came back looking for her, only to find all the buildings empty, but for the traces of blood in this one. Act worried. Don't show too much emotion, but pretend you are having a hard time concealing it. They should believe that."

Alec could see the admiration the simple plan caused in Regina and smirked. It was a good plan, if he did say so himself. He could _feel_ Biggs rolling his eyes beside him. 

He made a sign with his hand and Max and Nicole exited through the trapdoor to the roof. He followed not two steps behind. They needed to be in headquarters before Regina arrived. Biggs would stay to make sure Logan and Asha got out okay.

"Very well, this is the number where you can reach us. Memorize it." Asha was saying.

When the trapdoor closed behind Alec, she was still repeating the numbers.

* * *

A/N2: Hee J I laughed a lot with all the Asha speculation. It would have been cool to make her a Familiar, but then, I already did ;) (different story, if anyone is interested that one is on NWP-the link is in my profile).


	19. Conversations

A/N: Thank you all for being patient with me! I know I haven't been a good girl ;-), but hey! there's not much left to the story, so... 

Thank you Infie for the beta-job. Thanks to all for your opinions, they help a lot.

****

Tough Call

Conversations

"627." Dr. Sandeman said as he continued to stash papers into his old battered travel bag. He really couldn't remember the last time he'd used it. Another thing he had to thank Nicole for. The transgenic had always kept things in order, and that was the only reason he had been able to find the leather case.

The pale blond appeared inside the office's doors without a sound. If he didn't know better, Dr Sandeman would have thought he had been in the room all along.

"Sir?" 627 said.

"Get the car ready. We are leaving in twenty minutes."

"All of us sir?"

"No. We'll leave 256 here to man the fort, so to speak."

"Very well, sir." The younger man nodded before disappearing out the door.

That was one of the things he liked about soldiers in general and transgenics in particular. They didn't ask questions.

He took one last look around the room before nodding in satisfaction and heading for his bedroom. Clothes should be easier to pack. He was only taking the new ones. He'd gone shopping a couple of days ago, all he'd had was old fashioned and that wouldn't do. 

When one set out to save the world, one had to dress appropriately.

HR

* * *

The tall man in the robe approached the short haired priestess, who announced, "The source informed us that White is dead."

"Did she see the body?"

"Of course not. She is supposed to be on the lower side of the command chain. But she overheard some things." The man nodded and the priestess added. "And we know he never returned."

"Ironic, isn't it? All these years trying to distance himself from his father, yet they both succumbed to the same fatal flaw: they got too attached to their offspring."

"A pity. That hatred and desire to drift away from Sandeman made White a valuable asset to us."

"Yes." The man agreed.

"The source has proved to be very useful, though. I assume we are to leave her in position."

"Yes," the man said, "but contact should only be with you. We don't want to risk someone down the chain. This is a very delicate time."

"It shall be done as you say. Fenos'tol."

"Fenos'tol." The robed man turned and walked out the door.

* * *

Alec looked around the main hall of Terminal City's headquarters, marveling at how fast it had become the usual place for him to be. 

Everything seemed to have settled into a comfortable routine. Well, as much as a routine as anything concerning transgenics could be. But things had settled down after the events at the warehouse last week. His eyes became cold just remembering it.

The sight of Max leaning on a table talking to Joshua made him smile again. She was frowning, a hand on her hip, head tilted to the side. 

Nicole was a few steps behind, going over the security measures with Mole. The lizard guy was making threatening gestures with his cigar, which the X5 was completely ignoring, making Mole even more irritated.

Dix was sitting in front of a screen, a notebook filled with formulas on his lap. Luke was trying to get Lyon to join him in a conversation with X6 Joe, which the other refused. Lyon did not like Xs. At all.

Everything was back to normal. 

Even Regina.

She had done exactly as she'd been told that day. They'd all put on a show about not completely believing her at first, but her continuous exclamations of guilt over what could have happened 'convinced' them. It was a lucky thing that Biggs and Alec had by chance been going through that part of Terminal City. They'd been just in time to save Max. It was a lucky thing White had been so obsessed with the kid. Alec had watched this click in Regina's mind, confirming what she'd been told before.

She'd contacted Asha once with the information she was going to convey her contacts. It was all nothing more than telling them transgenics were getting organized. And some guard shifts... – all stuff that Alec had set up for her to see. And all false. 

It hadn't been hard. After all she was supposed to be just an X6 and with things getting organized at TC. It was logical that she would not have access to a lot of information.

They had had to talk to Ralph about it. But she was the only one of the X6s that knew. Alec didn't want Regina to notice the people she was in contact with all the time acting differently, but they couldn't not tell Ralph. The blonde might find out the designation Regina was using and that would be disastrous.

"What?" Ralph's eyes had opened like saucers when they told her. She had started to tremble, as if she was going to cry, but then her eyes had hardened as she realized what Regina had been trying to do. She had taken a deep breath. When she'd spoken again, her voice had been very determined. "What do you want me to do?"

She had been a real pro after that. She had been so intent on her vengeance she had been acting towards Regina exactly the same way she did to the other X6s. Quite impressive. As a matter of fact, she was the one who had passed on some of the info. 

She did seem older though. Whenever the others were not around, Alec could catch a glimpse of sadness in her eyes. And anger. He made a mental note to have someone talk to her. He still wasn't sure if it should be himself. Maybe Max? She was familiar with the concept of losing _siblings_.

He was still in awe of that. He should have seen it. When Max told him about the stories Ben used to tell them. He had always wondered back at Manticore how it was possible that they had escaped all together. He had barely known anyone back then. How could twelve kids have escaped together? After the escape, socializing had been even more frowned upon. They'd said it was that which had caused those who escaped to become traitors. And they were probably right, of course. 

The atmosphere had been really chilly when he'd come out of his long stay in psi-ops. Not that he had immediately noticed. He'd been too dazed, too out of himself for that. Of course, not knowing why he had been put there in the first place hadn't made things easier. It wasn't until much later that he found out about his 'twin' 493. 

But he understood now. Of course they could have escaped. No guards were a match for twelve transgenics working as a team. He'd do well to remember that. 

They'd had some really interesting talks, he and Max, both trying to understand, to know what it had been like for the other. It had been good. It was sort of neutral ground. It allowed them to talk about things that were really very personal, to get to know each other, but without having to talk about *them*. He knew they'd have to, eventually, but was happy to have it this way for now. A lot had happened in a week. 

He laughed at himself. Had it only been a week? It felt like a lifetime. So much had happened, at least in the first half of it. He looked at Biggs, smiling at something someone else said. A week ago he had thought he'd never see his best friend again. It was weird, the thought of never seeing that mischievous expression, those intelligent eyes always finding amusement in the oddest things. He really couldn't picture him gone. Speaking of the unthinkable… He watched Nicole walk his way. A week ago she didn't even exist in his little world.

"Do you have a minute?" She said in her usual inflexionless voice.

"Sure. What is it?" He said, following her to the room that was used as an office.

She took two sheets of paper from the top of the desk and handed them to him. "We need you to check it out before we send for that stuff."

A flicker of annoyance danced in his eyes for an instant. "You don't need my approval to do things."

"I wasn't seeking it." She answered off-handedly. "I merely asked you to check it in case you wanted to add something you needed."

Alec smiled ruefully. "Yeah, sorry, I just.. " A burst of laughter from his friend Biggs in the other room interrupted him. He watched Nicole glance in that direction and smiled, happy for the chance of changing the subject. "So.. how're things with you and Biggs?"

"Good. 511 is a very efficient soldier, we have no problem working together."

He laughed, "Don't know why I even bothered asking." His gaze shifted back to the other room, but instead of falling back on his friend it settled on the brunette biting her lip as she focused on what Joshua was telling her. "Actually, I do." He turned his eyes back to Nicole. "Helps a great deal to know he's around someone else." Nicole actually blinked at his words. Alec quickly clarified. "Don't get me wrong, I know he's not going to be looking at her that way, it's just... " He shrugged. 

Nicole remained silent.

"It's just.. I am not used to this, you know? They didn't teach us about stuff like this. Or they did, but not as something that would happen to us. It's so strange. Jealousy was something to be exploited on a target, on an opponent. Not something we were supposed to feel."

"I understand."

"Do you?"

"Yes. Sometimes when I was younger I got angry at the other soldiers, because they were able to stay at Manticore and I wasn't. It faded away with time, I redirected my anger at the real source of the problem. But I remember the feeling."

There was a beat, as Alec considered this. "I guess you are right. You know, it would be easier if I could just go take her in my arms, sweep her off to somewhere we could be alone and just don't let go until we were both senseless."

"Why don't you?" Nicole asked.

He chuckled, but said, "I just can't. I don't quite understand it myself. If it were anyone else, I'd do just that, but with Max... everything is just ... complicated." 

"She is quite different," Nicole conceded. "But it is the fact that you have feelings for her that makes things more complicated for you."

"Probably." He hung his head. "Not probably, certainly. I just can't seem to get her off of my mind. And I don't want just to have sex with her, although just being in the same room as her drives me completely insane with need. I find myself with a continuous h.." He stopped and shot her a sideways glance. "Too much information there, huh?" he asked wryly.

"I was just wondering why you are telling me all this."

"Well, that's easy. I need to talk to someone, it's driving me crazy. And it obviously can't be Max. It's the kind of stuff you talk to your best friend about- at least I guess so –" he frowned, "but he is kind of in the middle of it all, so... that leaves you. Somehow you don't strike me as the type who'd go telling the world, you know?" He winked at her.

"And even if I were that type, who would I go tell it all to?" She nodded. "Yes, it makes sense."

"Of course it does. My idea, isn't I?" he smirked. "But anyway, I just wish this whole Terminal City-Sandeman-Cult-End-of-the-World thing would go away so I can really work it out, but at the same time I dread the moment. Not like exposing my feelings, or even my thoughts, is something I like very much."

"Ah." Nicole nodded, deep in thought. "So this is like practice."

"Hmm, I guess you could call it that. Yeah. Except for the part where you are not talking back to me, or interrupting me, or misunderstanding what I say, and, uh, let's not forget, tying my stomach into tight knots just by looking at me, so that everything I want to say comes out wrong. Other than that..." he said, rolling his eyes. He thought he detected a hint of amusement in her eyes, but she said nothing. "How am I doing so far?" he asked with self-mockery, not really expecting an answer. 

"Okay, so now it's your turn."

"My turn?"

He shook his head with mock exasperation. "You skipped class that day, huh? This is what people call a conversation. One of the parties says something, then the other one says something in return, preferably on the same subject." He said slowly, as if explaining it to a child. "I told you about me and my ..sort-of-relationship. Now your number is up. Spill all the juicy details. Tell me how he rocks your world, how he's the best you've ever had." He smiled remembering similar words said long ago, inside a closet.

"If by 'had' you mean sex, then, technically I can't say that. We haven't had sex."

"You haven't?" Alec looked at her in disbelief.

"I suggested we wait until this was over when the talk of sex came up."

"And he went along with that?"

"Well, he has kissed me. Several times. Usually when I am not expecting it."

"Really? But he hasn't tried to go further than that?"

She shook her head almost imperceptibly. "I think he may be trying to make a point. He commented something about my lack of enthusiasm when the subject was broached."

Alec narrowed his eyes. "How exactly was the 'subject broached'?"

"I said it would be interesting to investigate what sex would be like between us, given our genetic make up." She looked at him when a coughing fit seemed to overtake Alec.

He cleared his throat. "You did, huh?" He stifled the bubble of laughter that threatened to come out. "And? How is it going so far. The study, I mean."

"It is quite stimulating. This kissing thing. The only other times I was with a male were during heat. There wasn't any kissing. The contact of his lips with mine seems to trigger many nerves into action, more than the usual ones activated by the sense of touch. The other senses seem to become more alert as well, and yet at the same time less so, as if they can only focus on the other person. There is definitely an increase of the body temperature. And a tightening of a series of muscles." 

Alec groaned. Well, he guessed he had asked for it, but really! Was she trying to _kill_ him?

"It is quite remarkable," she continued, "I am still puzzled about the stomach muscles. I can't find a reason for them to react along with the rest."

"Hmmm... maybe you should analyze that more carefully."

"You think?"

"Yup! Definitely. I wouldn't move onto other stuff until the kiss thing is thoroughly examined."

"Yes, I think that would be wise." She nodded.

Alec looked at his friend in the other room and smirked.

Hey, if _he_ wasn't getting any, why should anyone else?

* * *

Max slowly moved into the storage area for the guns. She took a wary look around and forced herself to breathe evenly, closing her eyes until she got it under control.

When she opened them again, a determined gleam in them almost managed to conceal the trace of fear behind.

It was hard.

It was a good thing her shark DNA allowed her to function with very little sleep, because she sure as hell wasn't getting much of it.

At night, the scenes of the warehouse would creep into her dreams, but instead of White, there was a little girl with very short hair and an ugly gown, shocked eyes glued to Max's as the life ebbed out of them. But those weren't the worst. The worst were the ones where she remained totally paralyzed. What if that had happened for real? What if after all the time her aim had not been as good? And what if it something similar happened again?

That was why she was here. She took two determined steps forward. She could not allow something like that to happen. 

And if she felt horrified and disgusted by the sight of the guns, then she would just have to deal with it.

Maybe she couldn't control the runes. Or what was in her blood. 

But she was damned if she would let this thing control her. 

Her hand finally reached one of the shelves and soft fingertips caressed the metal surface of a small gun. She felt the familiar shot of revulsion but she crushed it, letting only the smoothness of the material permeate her senses. She traced her fingers along it one more time before firmly grabbing it. She checked the weight carefully and very calmly disarmed it, and taking a cloth from the other shelf, started cleaning it. Professionally. Every movement was sleek and calculated. When she was done, she put the gun back together, loaded it, and placed it back where it had been.

She released a breath and the beginning of a smile played on her lips.

She had been coming here to clean one weapon each time for the last few days. It was the first time since she had shot White that she had touched a loaded one. Tomorrow she would start target practice.

She would _not_ let this beat her.

"Oh, sorry, didn't see you come in." Biggs said, almost bumping into her but exerting all his muscles so that he didn't even touch a hair of hers. 

__

Of course you didn't, you wouldn't have come in if you had. She thought, but aloud she just said, "Yeah, I was just leaving."

"Okay." He said. But as Max was about to reach the door, he said "Max?" He looked down and then back into her eyes, "I know this is very uncomfortable for you. It is for me too, you know?"

"Yes, I know."

"We should... er.. You think we should.. talk or something?" He asked and Max had to bite her lips to prevent herself from smiling, even despite herself. He was so clearly uncomfortable. And she had not missed the effort he had made to rephrase his declaration into a question. Proud one here too, huh? Maybe Manticore had put that into all the X5s. She took a deep breath. "All right." It would have been easier if she could just hate him. Or remained indifferent to him. But no, the stupid jerk just _had_ to go and help save her life, hadn't he? 

They remained silent a minute or two. "This is the part of talking when you are supposed to, you know, talk." She finally said.

He scratched the back of his neck absently. "Damn, and I was hoping I'd get out of that." He tossed lightly, before he turned serious again. "I am sorry about the things I said that day at Jam Pony. I .. forgot you were there." He didn't apologize for the heat incident. They both knew that part hadn't been his fault. Or hers, for that matter.

"So you wouldn't be sorry if I hadn't heard them?" He groaned, Max could see him mentally kick himself. "It's okay, I am just being difficult." She offered.

He even lifted one corner of his mouth at that. "So was I. I had been feeling so guilty ever since.. well, you know and so I took the first opportunity to lash out. You know, better to be angry than guilty." He said, shooting her a sideways glance.

__

Oh, did she know! She sighed. "Apology accepted."

He blinked. "Just like that?" He asked suspiciously.

She shrugged. "Want me to keep up the evil eye thing?"

"Not particularly, no. But ... why?"

"I just got tired of it all, you know? It really doesn't matter. I don't really know you. And you don't know me." She paused. "Just one more thing we have to thank our lovely childhood home for." She waved her hand in dismissal.

He watched her as if he couldn't for the life of him understand what she was talking about. To tell the truth, neither could she. She knew she should feel betrayed or resentful or something towards him. But she really didn't care.

Biggs was trying to understand the woman before him. He really was.

Well, when had women _ever _made sense? One day she was treating him like dirt, the next she didn't care anymore. Well, when he thought about it... Those were two sides of the same coin, weren't they?. 

He shook his head, well, he wasn't going to complain.

"So..." She was saying. 

He realized he'd been quiet for a while, "So..."

"So... How's things with you and Ice Queen Nicole?"

Max could see he was a little startled by her choice of topic, but anything was better that awkward silence. His answer was still careful. "Good, I guess."

"You two getting busy yet?"

"Excuse me?"

"Well, if you get to it maybe she'll loosen up some of that stiffness of hers."

He blinked. "Er.. well, no. Not yet." He answered, clearly uncomfortable. 

She raised a daring eyebrow, "Nothing?"

He squirmed a little. "We have... kissed and stuff."

"Oh, good. That should do the trick." This time he raised a questioning eyebrow, she simply shrugged and said, "You are one hell of a kisser."

He literally looked at her open mouthed. She hid her smirk.

"What?" She said, chin raised, a defiant look in her brown eyes.

Once he got past the shock, he let out his breath and glanced warily around. "Geez woman, are you crazy? Get me killed, why don't you?" When she just looked at him, he added, "Do you realize what Alec would do if he heard that?"

"Well, I'd think about that if I were you and ever thought of crossing me." She gave him a wink and a feral smile over her shoulder as she left the room.

Biggs stood staring after her before he burst out laughing.

Damn, the woman had spirit. He recalled those deep eyes, that defiant pose and he finally understood why his friend was crazy about her.

He shook his head once more, still smiling as he reached for a shotgun on one of the shelves, which was what he had come in here for in the first place.

* * *

Alec watched Max leave the weapon's storage room and smiled. Brave Max.

Nicole brought him out of his contemplation.

"Now that you've accomplished what you set up to do here, are we having the meeting?"

"Accomplished what I set out to.. oh, you mean the practice talk?" He asked, a little confused.  
"That too." Nicole answered. "Along with establishing an emotional connection with me." 

"Now why would I want to do that?"

"Well, if I am on your side, it brings me closer. If I am not, you don't lose anything. But if I am undecided, and there ever comes a time for a determination to be made, having an emotional connection, however small it may be, might tip the scales in your favor." She answered readily.

He stared at her, shaking his head amazed at how much alike they thought. "You know, sometimes you scare the hell out of me." He told her, serious.

She looked straight into his eyes, and calmly declared: "No, I don't."

He tipped his head to the side, as if considering and then broke into a mischievous grin. "Yeah, you're right, you don't." He wriggled his eyebrows, "But you do see my point here, don't you?" he asked, "It's kinda freaky."

She did not answer, didn't move a muscle, but he could '_see_' the shrug. He laughed. "Come on, Nicole, let's have that meeting of ours." 

* * *

"Okay, what do you have?" Alec asked Dix.

They were all crammed into the little office, after having made sure Ralph took little Regina out of headquarters.

"Well, it appears to be as we expected. She does carry some sort of unknown virus, other than the one we all know about. I am still not sure what it is, but the good news is I am pretty confident we can synthesize antibodies out if it." 

After White's words in the warehouse about Max, they had concentrated on her blood. Nicole told them Sandeman had explained to her how he had experimented with the 'nomalies' first. But the results hadn't been up to his expectations, how he had perfected it with the Xs.

"Okay, what's the bad news?"

"Well, in theory everything sounds great. But I would need a sample of the snake's blood to make sure we are talking about the same virus. We are trying to test it with the blood of those familiars you killed, to see if the antibodies they have are good for Max's virus as well." 

"What do you know? White was good for something after all." Alec winked. He turned serious again. "You are working on that vaccine anyway, aren't you?"

"Yes, we are. We will have to get our hands on some things first. You guys up to a little trip to the local hospitals?" Dix asked.

"What do you say, Max? You haven't been in one for some time now, I'm sure you miss it by now." Alec kidded Max who just glared at him. He chuckled. "Anything else?"

"Dr. Sandeman." Nicole said.

Alec looked at her, "What about him?"

"I have not contacted him in more than a week. He'll be on his way here by now."

"Think he'll come right here?"

"He knew about this place. He used to have his lab in this part of town. He and I talked about it once and concluded this would be a perfect place for transgenics to seek shelter. It's the reason I came here in the first place. It's the reason he'll be coming here."

Alec frowned. "All right. You and Biggs know him. Give Dix a description so he can generate a computer image of him. Shouldn't be hard. I want it distributed to the sentries, so they will recognize the doctor when he gets here. We do not want our little traitor to see him first. And we want to keep his presence, or at very least his identity a secret from her as well. At least until we figure out if it's good that they know or not."

"Ralph will have to be told. She has seen him." Biggs added.

"You are right. Will you make sure she doesn't blurt it out?"

"No worries, my friend." Biggs assured him with a bright smile.

"Good. Dix, let us know if you need more hands. Biggs here is great with computers," he rolled his eyes at that, "and Nicole says she is as well, but I'd prefer they stick to other chores. Feel free to call Cale, if the information is not too sensitive."

Dix nodded.

"Anything for us unsophisticated techno-peasants, boss?" Mole asked from behind his cigar. 

Alec glared at him, more for the use of the word 'boss' than anything. Just to be contrary, he said, "As a matter of fact, yes. Put that cigar away." 

Mole just chuckled, "You think a little smoke is going to damage that genetically engineered body of yours? Not likely, _boss_."

"I said, put it out." He gritted through his teeth. He had started it as a game. But it wasn't.

"Alec." Max said, putting a hand on his arm. "I'm sure Mole would 'butt out' if you ask him properly." She batted her eyes at the reptilian transgenic. 

"Still." Alec protested. 

She just looked at him pointedly.

He sighed in defeat. Great, now _Max_ of all people was telling him how not to be rude. He would have laughed if he were not feeling so bad about snapping at Mole like that.

"I am sorry, Mole. That was uncalled for. I .. I was just worried about.. er.."

"Baby X?"

Alec narrowed his eyes and looked at Biggs who just shrugged and shook his head.

"Sorry, boss, hard to keep something like that a secret when you make us analyze the girl's blood." Mole continued with a smirk.

Alec growled. He had not thought about that. Stupid of him. He glanced at Max. Her cheeks were several shades of red deeper than usual, but she didn't seem hurt or angry. Oh well...

"So, are you going to put it out or not?" He asked defiantly, but the mirth was unmistakable in his eyes. 

"Well, since you ask so nicely.."

Biggs laughed at their antics, and even Max smiled, no longer blushing. Nicole, of course, said nothing.

"Okay, here's what I want you to do," said Alec, smiling as well as Mole, after a great show of personal sacrifice, finally put the cigar out.

* * *

"Well, here we are. It's been a long time since I was in the city." Dr Sandeman told 627 amicably as the first checkpoint was behind them.

627 saw no need to reply, so he remained silent.

The old man glanced out the windshield with a nostalgic expression. "Yes, a very long time."

* * *


	20. Patient

A/N: Well, took me long enough, didn't it? *blush* I hope the length of the chapter will make up for that (if you don't fall asleep, that is :-/)

A/N2: Infie, darling… THANKS again. As usual, you always know to make the greatest suggestions. *hugs Infie tightly*

Tough Call 

**Patient**

Maggie Phillips rubbed her temples forcefully, as if that would make the headache go away. _One more day_. _Come on, just one more day!_

Tomorrow she could become sick. Tomorrow she could have a fever, a cold, be forced to stay in bed because she couldn't stand up... whatever!

But not today. Today she had five stupid reports to finish and on top of that she had to set everything up for her boss' conference tomorrow in Venice. Which meant, literally every single thing, from the airline tickets to the contents of the presentation itself. From the tickets to the opera with his latest lover to the documents that would back the products he was supposed to be selling. From his schedule and business contact's numbers to buying presents for his wife and kids over the phone and having them delivered to him at the hotel. 

And then, she had to go to dinner with Tom. And Maggie was sure today was going to be the day. She had been dating Tom for over two years now. She had put up with all of his stupid little manias, she had endured the tedious talks about his oh-so-great job, she had pretended she was not bored to death with what he had the audacity to call 'great sex'.  She had smiled and acted like a good, shy innocent girl in front of that overbearing dragon that was his mother. All because he had money, but more important, he _owned his own place. Maggie had been evicted so many times and had had to pay off sector police so many other times in her twenty four years of life that being the owner of the place she lived in was her one and only obsession. _

She would become Mrs. Tom Jones. And she would own part of the small one bedroom apartment. She was not going to let a cold get in the way of the big proposal she had been working her butt off to get.

Maggie got up and went to the bathroom and splashed some water into her heated face. She glanced at herself in the mirror and groaned. Her nose was beginning to look red and there were puffy bags under her eyes. She started looking for her make-up kit inside her purse and tried to ignore the wave of nausea that assaulted her. She was going to get her proposal tonight, and she was going to get her place, even if she had to crawl to the restaurant, she told herself.

But she would never make it to dinner that night. Or any other.

* * *

Dr. Sandeman was received at the Northern entrance of Terminal City by a serious Nicole and the young man he had observed in the museum in Salem some days before.

511's speculative eyes were resting on him. He was serious, but not quite like Nicole. It was more as if he was looking for an excuse to smile. He was a very interesting one. He had been able to read him quite clearly that day at the museum. He had been confused about the conversation taking place on the other side of that display, but his foremost thought had been extremely clear to Sandeman; He was worried about 494. Dr. Sandeman had immediately recognized that kind of concern. It was that of a soldier towards a comrade in arms. He had known right away the kid would drive all the way to Seattle to help out his friend. He could warn him on the phone, of course, but he would go there to help whatever way he could. It had been really interesting for him to realize that no matter what efforts Manticore had made to distance the transgenics from one another, the brothers-in-arms camaraderie had been stronger.

"Hello, doctor." The gray-haired X5 said coldly.

"Good to see you again, Nicole." He smiled. She never changed.

"Yeah, good to see you again too, doc." The other man said, raising an eyebrow.

Dr. Sandeman chuckled, yeah, the boy was definitely something, "Same here."

"Please, follow us." The please sounded exactly as what it was: a formality. Nicole had never been one for niceties.

They sat in the back seat of his car and after a quick nod, instructed 627 on where to take them. After a few minutes, they stopped before what looked like an abandoned building.

They got out of the car. Nicole gestured for the doctor to follow and entered through a rusty door that led to a flight of stairs. 627 had also got out and looked at them expectantly. Biggs smiled, "Let's go, kid, wouldn't want to leave you out here, lots of punks on the prowl to rob the distracted tourist or chauffeur."

627 looked at him offended. "They would never be able to rob me!"

"I know," Biggs laughed, "and that's precisely what I want to avoid."

627 followed the X5, not entirely sure if he had just been praised or insulted.

* * *

Alec watched Nicole and the infamous Dr. Sandeman walk through the door, followed closely by Biggs and an X6, that according to the description Nicole had given them, had to be 627. He had to be around sixteen, but looked older. He stood at attention until Nicole gave an almost imperceptible nod, and then he relaxed. The doctor was wearing a dark grey suit that seemed new, if a little wrinkled from the trip. He was using a cane like the one described by both Biggs and Ralph. 

Alec said nothing as they approached. The doctor had taken one look around the room as he had entered, but then his eyes had completely focused on Max. Alec could feel her nervousness as she stood beside him. Not that it was apparent in her posture or that any movement or expression was giving it away. He just...felt it. 

Yet he didn't move to reassure her. It wasn't the time. And she wouldn't have welcomed it anyway.

Sandeman smiled and took a step forward, raising his hand to touch her hair. Max remained completely still. Alec could understand her uneasiness. This was after all 'Father' as Joshua called him. Even he felt somewhat overcome by his presence.

"Look at you, all grown up..." the old man was saying, still smiling. Then he withdrew his hand hastily and looked around again. "I am sorry," he cleared his throat, "it was just a tad overwhelming." He became serious again and extended his hand. "I am doctor Benjamin Sandeman."

Max shook his hand, saying, "Max."

Alec stepped closer and also shook the offered hand. "X5-494," he said, and then a corner of his mouth lifted, "also known as Alec." 

Max added, "The one by the door is Biggs," the mentioned one made a two-fingered mock salute, an irreverent smirk on his lips that made Alec smile, "and you already know Nicole." She finished.

The human smiled at each of them in turn. "Well, I guess that means I should introduce my companion. Everyone, this is 627."

Max smiled at the X6. "627, huh? Well, we can't have that." She paused, looking at the kid "You are awfully quiet. Gonna call you Zip. And shut up, Alec!" she said before he could say anything. 

The boy blinked but said nothing.

"Zip. Suits him." The doctor said, bringing everyone's attention back to him. After a few more seconds of silence, he spoke again. "I guess you must have some questions to ask me, right?"

* * *

"A couple, yeah." Max said in what seemed like an easygoing tone. "Maybe."

He watched Alec pick up right were Max left off, same tone even. Dr. Sandeman wasn't fooled by it, but he didn't resent the mistrust. These kids were trained as soldiers and they'd been through a lot. Not an easy combination. "But why don't you tell us about yourself first."

Nicole didn't move a muscle, but the doctor sensed her approval of the approach the other two transgenics had chosen. Nicole always admired cold headed, strategic thinking, even when it was used against her or her interests.

He cleared his throat. "Right." He looked at the only chair sitting in the middle of the room and pointed at it with one hand, "Mind if I sit down? I'm a bit old, and this might take a while."

"Not at all, please do." Max said politely at the same time Alec made the corresponding gesture with his arm. They were very good at this, the doctor thought. He wondered if they practiced it. He sat down, and placed the cane across his lap.

"Well, as you all probably know by now, I used to be a Familiar. My mother was one. My father was chosen for her. I don't remember him. He was out of the picture before I got to the age when I'd remember him. I never found out what happened to him." He looked down, more thoughtful than sad, before raising his eyes again. "I went to a very exclusive school. And I really mean that. Everyone who wasn't one of 'us' was excluded. It wasn't until I got out of there and went to university that I ever came in contact with 'normal' people. It was weird for me."

He watched Max nod in sympathy. Yes, these kids would understand. They'd probably had similar experiences when they first left Manticore. "I got my Ph.D in Genetics. I met my wife Nicole," he smiled at the X5 standing to his right, "naturally, by design of the Conclave. We married. We lost two kids before we had our first boy."

"Ames." Max said.

He looked at her and then at Nicole, who just said: "It became necessary to divulge that information. Could not be helped."

The doctor rubbed a hand against his forehead, "Very well," he knew she wouldn't have shared the information unless it really was indispensable. "It is not that I wanted to hide it, but my son and I… we haven't been very close. We don't see eye to eye on many things. I know he was after you two." He looked at Max and Alec, still standing in the same spot they'd been when he came in. They nodded. He shook his head. "I can't really blame him for that, he is doing what he has been taught. He was exposed to the doctrine since he was very young. He knows nothing else. What always disappointed me was his lack of vision, his inability to see that the way they taught us might not be the only one." His tone mirrored his frustration.  He was being honest. He only hoped the transgenics would see it. He sighed. "But I am getting ahead of myself. I started working in genetics. I was one of the best in the field. It fascinated me. Genetically enhanced cells were always my priority; after all, all of us Familiars had them. Ours were acquired through thousands of years of selective breeding, a careful and long-running procedure to improve our genes. I found a way to accelerate that process. And by including animal DNA to add other qualities, created you." He raised his arms to encompass all the others in the room. An unmistakable look of pride was in his eyes as he looked at each of them in turn. 

"Of course, it took many years. You have probably seen some of the earlier experiments, one of them was on the news not long ago. We worked harder until we created perfection. You." He smiled. 

"During my first years investigating I had another son, C.J. He was a weak little boy. I checked his blood and genetic make-up. I knew he wouldn't make it through the Trial. When I started creating the first transgenics, I tried to make them immune. To see if there was a way I could adapt it to make C.J. immune too. I know it sounds calculating, but I just wanted my boy to survive."

"Unfortunately, I couldn't perfect it before he reached the appropriate age. So I took him away. I sent him somewhere I knew he would be safe. I attempted to send Ames with him, but he was old enough to oppose me. As a result, I was banned. They tried to make me disappear. I was, however, a big part of one of the government's most secret and well guarded projects. They were unable to reach me."

The Xs nodded. Manticore was definitely not common knowledge, at least not back then. And certainly not a place anyone could easily get in or out of. It took twelve transgenics working as a unit to escape that one time, and four of them to get back in afterwards. Still, they hadn't been completely successful, since two of them had gone down or been captured in the attempt. 

Dr. Sandeman continued. "The irony of it all was the fact that not two months after it all transpired, I was finally able to perfect the technique. It was then that all of you were created. Actually, all of you who are X5s." He smiled briefly at Zip, before glancing back at Max. "You were one of the last ever created. It took me a little longer to encode everything I needed to into you."

"The message?" Max asked.

"Yes, the message, but also the virus. I needed a pure sample to make a vaccine out of it, but also I needed to hide it, so no one would know."

"Why exactly?" Max interrogated him.

"I had been trying to convince the conclave of the advantages of genetic manipulation over breeding methods for years. Not as replacement, but as improvement. Even before I started with Manticore. Yet they would have none of it. It was against the way it had always been. I had accepted it, reluctantly. Nevertheless, when I realized what would happen to my youngest son and I was exiled, I realized something else. I knew I would survive The Coming, and however confident I was in my ability to find a way to ensure C.J.'s survival, I simply did not want to live in a world where only these stubborn and inflexible people lived. That was why you were made." He told her with a smile.

"We wanted to ask you. It's related to something you said before. How was it possible that no one ever found the virus in her?" Alec asked, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

"Yes, and also, if I have the pure stock or whatever you science guys call this, how come I never infected anyone? I've... I've had... contact with other transgenics," a blush crept into Max's cheeks as she added to Alec's question, "and I understand them not getting sick, given what you said about us being immune and all. But I've also been with humans, even given blood to them, and nothing happened to them, well... nothing bad."

Sandeman nodded, understanding their concerns. "Well, that is exactly what I meant by 'hiding it'."

Alec interrupted him, "Layman's terms, will you? _Some_ of us haven't had that much training on genetics." He said, looking at Max with a smirk.

"Yeah, that's right," she replied smiling sweetly, a hand on her hips, "what with all the training in fighting and guns and stuff, these poor kids had no time for Biology." She signaled the male transgenics in the room. Alec and Biggs looked at her with identical expressions of disbelief. "Not *that* kind of biology, anyway," she amended as she rolled her eyes.  

The doctor smiled at their banter, "Very well. The virus was dormant in your spleen and your appendix. These are both organs you can live without, which made them less likely to become the target of one of Manticore's research focuses. Along with the runes that appeared on you, the virus was released.  You see? It was impossible for you to infect anyone before. Your blood was the same as everyone else's."

Max nodded and frowned at the same time. "Does that mean I could infect people now? I can't give blood?"

Sandeman smiled again. "Don't worry. The virus is still encased in a protein capsule. It acts as a protective shield." He watched Alec look at her with a faint smile. So they had already noticed the coating. These kids were not dumb at all. Once again he felt a surge of pride engulf him. "I wasn't going to risk you accidentally infecting someone after all the planning and waiting now, was I?" They all smiled with him. All except Nicole, of course.

"Only a specific chemical reaction would be able to release it. Nothing you can naturally ingest, and the reaction can only happen in certain controlled circumstances. However, I am under the suspicion you already know all this. I am positive Nicole has told you, and you have been able to fill in the blanks. Am I right?" he smiled at them again.

"Naturally," Alec looked at Biggs and Max and back at him, a smirk spreading over his lips. "We wouldn't want to disappoint our 'Father'." He winked as he said the last word.

Dr. Sandeman grinned and wrinkles creased the skin around his eyes, making him look like a thin, beardless version of Santa Claus. He had to resist the urge to ruffle the kid's hair. He definitely seemed to be a mischievous, irreverent scoundrel. Sandeman somehow knew with certainty that this one must have driven everyone at Manticore crazy. "And I presume you have also been working on making a vaccine. Have you accomplished it?" he asked.

It was 452… Max, he corrected himself, who answered. "We think we have. We've... well, actually _they've_ isolated the virus from the coating and made an experimental version. The thing is, we need to test it. We've tried it on the few rats that survived here in Terminal City and it worked. But we infected them with my own virus, so we can't be positive it's going to be the same as with the snake blood one."

"Plus, even if it does work, we need supplies. Our guess is they'll be releasing this in some way on the night of the solstice, in different parts of the US and, we assume the rest of the planet. This would be the best way to assure maximum spread. If it is the same as Max's, it's not airborne. Still, it does survive in water, so it stands to reason they'll try and infect watercourses with it." Sandeman nodded as Alec stopped to look at him. It was certainly the way the Familiars had planned it. Thousands of years of planning, and these kids figured it out in a matter of days. Of course, the transgenics had been trained by military experts. Alec confirmed this with his next words. "We can naturally move out to try to stop them. We know, after all, the best vectors for introduction into a water system." Alec smirked. Yes, definitely knows every biochemical attack scenario the CDC and Pentagon ever came up with, Benjamin thought. Alec continued talking, "but we can't make sure we've covered them all. And we don't have the manpower to do so anyway. So we need to prepare as much of the vaccine as we possibly can in the few days we have left. Providing, of course, it's the correct one."

"Well, I might be able to help in that department." Sandeman shot them a mischievous smile. "I am not sure if Nicole told you, but I used to have labs in this part of town." The transgenics looked at each other and then back at him. "I think it will be best to show you. We have to move into another building, though."

* * *

Dr. Lewis adjusted his mask again and checked his suit before leaving the room. Plastic drapes sealed the chamber. He stepped into another makeshift isolation room and looked at the chart. 

Maggie Phillips; 24 years of age. Admitted at 12pm with a temp of 107 degrees, BP of 210 over 160, dizziness, petechial marks on her face. 

It was the same symptoms as the rest of them.

This was not good.

He watched the girl on the bed. She was kind of pretty. Or she used to be. Her face was all swollen and red. She was sweating and tossing around the bed. He checked her IV and placed a gloved hand on her forehead.

There really wasn't much he could do. He had started with the regular procedures for hemorragic fevers, but according to the lab results, this wasn't like any known virus they had ever seen. Not even the ones found only in textbooks. 

The head nurse came up to him and he shook his head. "Continue giving her fluids. Try to make her as comfortable as possible."

"Yes, Dr. Lewis." She said.

He moved to leave but said, turning at the last minute. "Make sure you don't get contaminated. I'm calling the CDC right now."

* * *

Max looked at Alec and Biggs as they all moved to walk to the other building, and then nodded. "All right, Doctor," she said, "while we are at it, why don't you tell us a bit more. Say... about Renfro."

Dr. Sandeman smiled sadly. "Elizabeth..." he sighed. "Elizabeth was a Familiar. She was sent to Manticore to kill me. After many years, they were finally able to place someone on the inside. I had met her before. She had been a student of mine when I was still teaching genetics. She only took a basic course. She was more interested in the administrative areas. Yet she was very bright. When she was still very young, she joined the army, ostensibly to be able to afford college. This was of course, not necessary, the Familiars were all more than able to place anyone anywhere. They preferred to do things the way they'd seem least suspicious, though." The doctor looked up, startled when Alec kicked a can as they stepped out into a dark alley. Max shook her head at Alec, who made his best 'oops' face and gestured for the doctor to continue.

"Elizabeth met a young man in the army. She fell for him completely. She knew it wouldn't be allowed, but she couldn't stop herself."

Max looked at Alec and could see he was having the same trouble she was trying to picture bitch Renfro as young, let alone in love.

"When The Conclave found out, they ordered her to terminate her relationship immediately. It was very difficult for her, but she did what she had to. She broke the boy's heart and her own, and she severed all ties with him." Sandeman explained. "She focused all her energy in her work. She was very capable, and very soon she was going up the ranks of the military." They turned around a corner into a street with taller buildings, a quick look around told Max this was the part of Terminal City they had not been able to check out yet. Well, of course they had checked it out, but not thoroughly.

"A short time after all this transpired, the lad was killed in a car accident. I knew it was a set-up, an assassination. So did Elizabeth. She took it in and continued as usual. But something was broken inside of her." They turned another corner and walked down yet another street, avoiding pieces of junk and debris.

"When I found out she had been sent to Manticore I confronted her," the doctor resumed his tale, "I told her what I was trying to do. She agreed. More out of hate for the Conclave than love of humanity. She had become a bitter woman." Max could hear the pity in his voice. "Still, whatever her reasons, she agreed to stage my demise and aid me in my hiding. She told Nicole it was important to keep me alive. And this was true, but it was not important for Manticore. It was important to her. The guards in the house were there to keep me safe, rather than to keep me from escaping. And that was also the reason you were there as well, Nicole. Insurance." He looked at Nicole fondly. "I am not sure why she didn't tell you this. My guess is she wanted to make sure I wouldn't betray her and go back to The Conclave, exposing her and most importantly, keeping her from getting her revenge. As I said, she'd become rather bitter."

Max did not doubt that for a second. And by their expressions –or rather, the lack of them – neither did the rest of the transgenics around her. Plus, Max had only endured the woman for a few months. She could only begin to imagine what it had been like for the rest of them. She turned her attention back to the old man as he continued to speak.

"Of course, I can't really blame her for the lack of trust. I didn't exactly rely on her either. I never told her about 452. All she knew was that I'd perfected away to make you would survive. It was the reason she was so adamant you became the best soldiers, she wanted you to fight against the Familiars." He made a waving gesture with his hand, "It wasn't until shortly before you burnt down the place that I told her we needed to find the one with no junk DNA. I told her that for security reasons I had made sure I didn't know which egg I had encoded all this in. This is of course, completely absurd, but she did not have that much of an imagination, and certainly not enough knowledge to doubt my claims. She called me a couple of days later, saying she'd found you. However, that same night I heard about the fire in the 'Veteran's Hospital'. The search began all over again, only this time without Manticore's resources." He smiled crookedly. "Fortunately, I had Nicole with me. She was the one that thought about checking out the exhibition at the museum. It had been mysteriously robbed, she figured it had to have been an X series. And she also figured the ones chasing after the transgenics would deduce that and be there as well. All we had to do was tag them, and sooner or later they would lead us to you. Our running into X6-215 forced us to split forces, however. It was another possible lead to the Familiars and more transgenics, and Nicole went to check that out."

He signaled a one-storied building to their left. "When I saw 511 had heard the entire conversation between my son and the other Familiar I knew he'd come back here to help. So I arranged for 215 to 'run into him'. I was told after the fact that it wasn't the smartest of moves," he smiled at the gray-haired X5 and Max could just imagine Nicole's disdain at such a poorly designed plan. "But it worked, to some extent."

They reached the door of the designated building and Sandeman opened it.  Of course, like most doors in Terminal City, it wasn't locked. They entered a spacious room with tables that looked as though they were once white, sinks, ovens with ventilation chutes on the sides, and a desk in a corner. The artifacts were missing –post-pulse piracy, no doubt- but the air was musty, as if the place had been closed for years. There were floor to ceiling closets on the far wall. 

Max almost smiled as she watched Biggs come in last. She had caught the sign Alec had made for him before they left the chamber they had first received the doctor in. She imagined it had been for Biggs to call HQ to make sure Regina was still entertained while they walked the streets of Terminal City. She had to hand it to the dark haired guy, not even she had seen him do it. He had seemed to be walking beside them the whole way. Of course, he'd been behind them on the stairs, which had been really handy. And then, when they were out, Alec had _accidentally kicked that can. A few months back she would have written it off as typical Alec clumsiness. But now she had taken it for what it was, a little diversion to allow Biggs to click off the phone and put the cell back into his pocket.  It had been perfectly executed by both of them. _

After the door closed behind them, Dr. Sandeman approached one of the cabinets.  He opened a drawer, extended his hand to touch something in the upper part of the drawer case, and there was a very faint swooshing sound. One that all of them had no trouble hearing, due to their enhanced capabilities.

Sandeman walked up to another closet door and opened it. He pushed the back panel lightly and it opened to reveal a dark, small space behind. He gestured for them to pass. Nicole put out a hand to stop Max when she would have moved and Max groaned internally, but said nothing. What would be the point?

Biggs entered first, followed by the doctor and Alec and Zip. The girls only proceeded after hearing a piercing whistle, out of human hearing-range: Biggs' 'all clear'. None of them thought there was something to fear in there, but training had a way of kicking in on situations like this, Max thought as she crossed the threshold and followed Nicole down a flight of stairs. She watched a pair of lights start to move downstairs. Biggs' and Alec's flashlights, turned on for the benefit of the doctor, no doubt. None of them were sure about the Familiar's abilities, but Regina hadn't been able to see too clearly at the warehouse that night. 

Sandeman pressed a button on the wall, and the hidden opening quietly closed behind her, before another door opened at the bottom of the stairs.

As Max and Nicole entered the room, they were met by a state of the art, spotlessly clean  - the isolation panels on both the doors they had gone through probably responsible for that - laboratory. Everything was gleaming white and looked new. It looked very much like the labs at Manticore. 

"Whoa!" Biggs exclaimed softly, pretty much summing up what they were all thinking.

"Yes," the doctor nodded, "here we have all the necessary equipment and supplies," he signaled a floor to ceiling refrigerator door on one of the walls, "to provide a vaccine for the entire United States, and with a large quantity to spare."

"You certainly were prepared, doc." Alec said with a smile, his hands inside his jacket pockets and his weight balanced on the balls of his feet. He looked completely adorable. Max frowned. They'd been looking for the doctor for many months, and now that he was there, all she could think of was how cute Alec was.

She took a deep breath and focused on what Sandeman was saying about knowing the day would come. Soon she was completely absorbed by virus issues.

* * *

"This one all right?" 'Joe' asked 215 for the fourth time in the past half hour.

The blonde girl looked thoughtful and then nodded. "Yes, this will do. Let's go in."

"Finally!" Joe muttered under his breath. He wasn't sure exactly what was wrong with 215 today, but she had been taking them from one place to another all day, They had scoped more supermarkets and shops that he even knew how to count. And finally, when they were heading back to Terminal City, she said they should go train a little. She had overheard the X5s talking about testing the X6s to see if they were still fit, and that they shouldn't be all out of practice. 

Joe and Lizzie had immediately agreed. The last thing he wanted was for 494 to think he was a slacker. The X5 had been his hand to hand instructor for a while back at Manticore. He was the best. Lizzie wouldn't want to let Alec down either. She still thought Alec was 'way cute', which angered Joe, even though he didn't understand why, since he knew it to be the truth. Regina had been the only one opposing the idea, saying she wasn't in the mood for sparring. But Ralph had looked at her and asked if she wanted to let their superiors down. At which point, 809 had had to reluctantly agree to the work. One never wanted to let one's superiors down.

But then, instead of going to the nearest buildings to headquarters, Ralph had taken them to the eastern limits of TC. And then she shook her head at one building after another. Which was why he was glad she had finally found one to her liking.

It was an old building, with very thick walls and only one small window, high up one of the sides.

"I heard that!" Ralph turned to look at him with mock anger in her eyes. "But, I am going to let it slide, because I am a very good girl.  So, " she smiled, "I am going to let Lizzie here kick your ass in there."

Had he been around Max longer, he would have realized she was doing her best to imitate the oh-niner's speech. But since he hadn't, all he thought was how strange that sounded.

They all entered the building and, after shoving some machinery to the sides, they had a pretty decent area to spar. 

Joe smiled at Lizzie as she tied her fiery red hair in a tight ponytail. He took off his shirt. He would have preferred to go against one of the others. He was awfully good at hand to hand and he had wanted her to watch him, for some reason. He looked in Ralph and Regina's direction, to see if there was any chance they'd switch places. But he saw Ralph already approaching the other girl with a feral smile on her lips.

"Well, I guess that leaves you and me, huh?" She said. 

Joe thought it was a little odd, he never would have pegged 215 for one to like fighting, but she appeared to be looking forward to this.

Oh, well, he guessed this wasn't so bad. He was not going to be able to show off for Lizzie, but at least he'd be touching her, and maybe showing her some moves? Who knew... could be fun.

* * *

Alec climbed up the stairs of headquarters' building three steps at a time. Once he was out on the roof he looked around before heading towards the dark shape perched atop the four-foot tall wall that surrounded the structure. 

He leaned against the brick barrier and looked out into the city of Seattle. It seemed strangely peaceful and gray. All sorts of noises reached this part of Terminal City from the streets beyond the fences during the day, but in this twilight hour, it appeared to be deserted. Some lights were on, but mostly people preferred to save what little energy they had, making the town look ghostly. 

The rain had stopped some ten minutes before, so he had known he'd find her here. They remained silent for a few minutes, until Max glanced at him and softly said, "Hey, Alec." 

"Oh, please, do I have to do the whole 'Hey, Max' with the silly smile the way Logan used to? Cause it'll make my stomach turn, and seriously, more disgusting smells are the last thing we need in this dump. Of course, I could try and s...-"

"Oh, yuck, Alec." She hit his shoulder, making a funny face. "Can't you be serious for like once?" But she was smiling.

He looked thoughtful before saying, "Uhm...no?" They smiled at each other. "Whatcha doing here anyway?"

She sighed and turned serious again. "Needed some air."

"Was that a hint?" He asked with a wink.

"Pfft, as if you would care if it was." She challenged him with raised eyebrows.

"I am offended!" He mockingly protested, but then turned serious eyes her way. "It's going to be all right, Max."

She blinked and he saw the moisture glinting in her dark eyes. "I keep telling myself that, you know? But how do we know? It's a huge responsibility. And I know I probably sound like a pathetic, whiny broad, but why did it have to be me?"

"Don't worry, I am used to whiny you." He winked playfully, but his hand was resting on hers and he squeezed it reassuringly.

Max smiled at him lightly, shaking her head. "You are unbelievable, you know that? Where do you find the strength to joke at a time like this? And don't tell me you are not worried, cause I know you are. So much could go wrong... "

He raised a shoulder and sighed. "I know, and I _am_ worried. And if there was any way I could take the load off your shoulders I would. But I can't."

"I know you would."

He gazed into her eyes, searching. "Do you?"

She nodded.

"Good." He just said and climbed on the wall. They both sat there in silence for a few more minutes, staring at the horizon.

The images of all that had transpired during the day kept repeating themselves in Alec's mind as he sat there with her. They'd come back to headquarters after making sure Regina wasn't around. Ralph had suggested a little sparring session. Alec knew the Familiar would feel no pain, but he almost felt sorry for her. Almost, he thought with a smirk. That should keep her ... entertained.

He smiled as he recalled Joshua's face as he saw 'Father'. He had practically flung himself at the doctor. It had been worth seeing. And the doctor had been so surprised to see him there as well. Alec could tell he was genuinely happy. 

And then Sandeman had gone to show Dix the installations. Dix had been delighted.

Suddenly, Max spoke again, startling him. "Do you ever think what life will be like for it?"

He didn't have to ask what she was talking about. "Yes, I do."

She looked back at him. "What if we fail? What if we can't stop this virus madness?"

"We will stop it. But even if we can't, the baby will be fine. We'll make sure of it. He or she will have us, won't have to be alone. And we'll take care of it. This virus doesn't affect plants and animals. We can survive in any environment. And we can fight if we have to. So it's going to be all right." He said seriously. 

She looked at him with unshed tears in her eyes and nodded. She tried to say something, but closed her mouth again. 

"And I am not just saying that. I am promising you. Whatever happens, our baby will be okay." He reached out and pulled her to him, rocking her lightly, his chin on top of her head. "Even if something happens to me, there's still Biggs. And however comfortable I am with it all or not, he's also the baby's father. He'll look after you two." He watched her make a face and smiled lightly. "He's a good guy, Max."

She sighed, "I know... I think."

He tilted her face up and smiled at her mischievously, "But I wouldn't worry about that if I were you. I mean, do you seriously think I would be so easy to get rid of?"

She returned the gesture, "Nah, I guess you just can't stop bugging me long enough to get killed, can you?"

"Exactly." He answered with a grin and a wink. "What do you say? Should we go back inside?"

She sighed. "I guess." 

Alec let go of her and turned to hop down of the wall, but he felt her fingers on his arm again.

"Alec," she said softly. And when he looked at her, she was serious again. "Thank you." She said.

He took her words in and just nodded. It wasn't gratitude he saw in her eyes, though. He didn't want to say anything, didn't even want to move; he just wanted to relish the feeling, to enjoy the look in her eyes. He knew it was foolish and maybe even a little pathetic of him, but he didn't care. As casual as he'd tried to make it look, he was worried too. And just having her here with him made him feel better. But when she looked at him like that...

She leaned closer to him, her eyes glued to his. She was going to do it. She was going to kiss him. He held his breath in anticipation.

Yet even when he was expecting it, nothing could have prepared him for the jolt he felt when her lips touched his. They had kissed before, but this was different. His hand reached behind her neck and he brought her closer. There was no mistaking the hunger in the kiss. 

Somehow she was sitting across his lap and he unconsciously changed his position to straddle the wall to balance both of them on top of it. His muscles strained and he felt her groan as she sensed it. The next thing he knew, she was practically attacking him. And he was attacking right back. Their tongues were engrossed in a back and forth battle, hands were roaming all over with a distinct feeling of urgency. 

He lowered the zipper of her leather vest, his lips following the trail with hungry kisses. When he raised his head again, he remained completely enthralled by the sight of the black, lacy bra. The thought that he had never pictured her as one to go for lace – no matter how much he had wished and dreamed of it – intruded his mind, but he quickly dismissed it. She was tugging at his hair to make him lift his lips back to hers, and he didn't disappoint her.

His thumbs softly touched the smooth fabric over her breasts and she arched her back, her legs tightening around him.

Damn, this felt nice. He'd been dying to touch her, especially this last week, having her so close all the time, living under the same roof... He wasn't sure how it had started right now, but he didn't care. And he wasn't going to let anything spoil it. Nope, not even that shrilling whistle that was drilling into his brain. 

"Damn." He drew away from her and closed his eyes. When he opened them, he watched her eyes focus again and knew she had heard it too. She had no way of knowing exactly what it was saying – it was Biggs' and his personal code – but she knew it was important enough for him to have stopped. "Not critical," he assured her, "but there's something we _need_ to see."

She nodded, not looking at him, and he held her by her waist to lift her off his lap and lower her onto the roof again. He jumped down and stood in front of her. He looked down and then started to slide the zipper back up. "I'm sorry." He wasn't apologizing, he was just regretting he had had to stop.

"It's okay." She said, her smile a little unsure. "Shouldn't we be going down?"

"Yeah." He said softly and turned to leave. She placed a hand on his arm to stop him and kissed him again. Passionately. Before whispering "I am sorry too" and looking at him with longing in her eyes.

Then her entire demeanor changed, "Now let's go, soldier. Or...perhaps you need a little more... time?" she looked down at him, before winking and walking to the stairs, her hips swaying sensuously… 

Leaving a very frustrated Alec to count back from twenty. He was going to have to get her back for that. _Oh, yeah_, he thought as he added another twenty to the countdown.

But then he smiled. He would enjoy it. And more important, for a few minutes, her mind had definitely not been buzzing with gloomy thoughts.

He shook his head again, happy, and started down the stairs to see what else this day had in store for them. He was sure it couldn't be good news. But right now, he was ready for anything.

* * *

He was met by complete silence, except for the voice of the anchor woman on TV.

"...Atlanta Sanitary Authorities have refused to comment on it, but our sources report several critical cases of this illness being treated inside the hospital, all of which arrived within barely two hours. The CDC has been called on scene and they have locked the access to the left wing of the hospital. As of now, six people have been confirmed deceased at County General alone. We are waiting for confirmation from the other big hospitals in town, but there's been a definite increase of activity in all of them..."  

The scene cut to a worried looking man in a business suit pacing the street in front of the hospital building. A reporter approached him, microphone in hand. "Sir, have you been here long? Can you tell us anything?"

"They won't let me in. They won't even tell me what is going on. My daughter called me. She said she was going to come here. She wasn't feeling so well. She thought she was coming down with the flu or something. But they aren't letting me in. Won't even tell me anything." His worry and despair seeped through his words. "She was just fine when I talked to her on the phone this morning..."

The image changed back to the blonde journalist in the pink suit. "As you can see, not even family members are receiving any information and the tension is rising as people demand to know what is going on. We repeat, these people became sick _today. And there are already fatalities. The number of victims of this disease remains unknown. We will keep you posted. This is Tricia Adams, for WKNN."_

Silence permeated the room as the news changed to a multiple car accident in a highway. Alec looked over at Max, who was looking at him out of wide eyes. He sensed Biggs' eyes on him too. 

"I thought this was going to come down the day of the solstice." Dix was the first one to find his voice.

As one, they all turned to look at the only non-transgenic in the room, who looked as white as a ghost.

"Well, that was the way it was supposed to. Apparently, someone decided to change the plan."


	21. Twists

A/N: Well, as usual I have to thank my good friend Infie, who is the greatest, and always makes time in her overly busy days to check out this for me. You rock, hon! *hugs Inf*

A/N2: I know I always say this, but I am ever so sorry for taking so long. My life has been pretty hectic lately. I thank you all for always hanging in there with me. And as usual, your comments are more than welcomed.

****

Tough Call

Twists

"All right buddy, let me know when you land." Alec finished the phone call and rubbed the back of his neck.

He looked up to see Max and Nicole looking at him and shrugged. He knew they'd heard the same he had. Biggs had nothing new to report. The good doctor had made a few phone calls to the Atlanta Sanitary authorities while in flight, but until they landed, there wasn't much they could do. Over twenty-four hours had passed since they'd seen the broadcast. After the initial shock – which had lasted all of two and a half seconds – they'd all jumped into action.

"All right, people, anyone doubt this is it?" Alec had asked, looking around the room. "If you do, speak now."

"No, sir." Had been the automatic response of the transgenics in the room. Alec hadn't even bothered to protest the 'sir' treatment. He'd looked at Sandeman who had also shaken his head.

"All right, then give me ideas of what to do. Five minutes, then we choose a course of action."

They'd pretty much agreed on everything. First off, they'd sent Lyon and Luke to gather all the vaccine Dix had been able to fabricate, which had been a considerable amount given the lack of supplies. But a strategic trip to the local hospitals the night before had come in handy. 

They'd contacted Logan to let him know what was going on and to have him help get them a flight to Atlanta if they needed one. 

Dix and the doctor had gone to the lab to make some more of the antigen. Sandeman had wanted Max to give more blood, but they'd told him that she could give no more than half a pint. She had given some recently – with which Dix had made the vaccine – so she would be too weak if she gave more. Besides, the cases so far had only been in Atlanta and the amount they had was enough. 

They had watched fascinated as the doctor isolated the virus in Max's blood. It had been so elegant and precise. Subsequently, he'd removed the protein coating. Of course, Dix had done the same thing, but he had no where near the ability and practice the doctor had.

In a way, post-pulse America was a dream for the infectious-disease control people. Sector control – and the gas shortage - made sure people stayed within the city. A feat that would have been much more difficult, if not impossible, before the electromagnetic pulse had been released. By the time they could have secured every exit, it would have been too late.

Logan had finally managed to get them a chopper. Max and Nicole had gone to score some fuel for it.

Alec smiled just remembering Nicole's offended state when Max had used their trip to town as an excuse to go pay a little visit to Original Cindy. Alec was sure she would have growled, had that not been too much of a display of emotion.

Yes, it was a flagrant breech of security, but in all honesty, Alec hadn't been able to deny it to Max. In fact, he was the one that had procured the two doses of the antigen for her to give to OC – the other one was for Sketchy- and another two for Logan and Asha. He could justify the two 'freedom fighters' as valuable assets to their cause. But Sketch and Cindy? Well... they were important for ... morale? Damn right they were! After all, it would have caused a tremendous scene had he attempted to stop Max, and that wasn't good, right? Ha laughed at himself. As if he would have tried to. Maybe it wasn't fair, but these people were their friends. He didn't even want to think what his superiors at Manticore would have thought of _that_. So unprofessional. And he didn't give a damn.

Deciding who was to fly to Atlanta had been more of an issue. As much as Max had protested, there was no question in anyone's mind but hers that she was not going. She was 'the one', they couldn't risk exposing her, especially in an unfamiliar city where they wouldn't be able to protect her as they could here. The fact that she was pregnant had not been brought up but it had also been on everyone's minds.

Sandeman was also someone they didn't particularly want to have out in the open. But in the end they decided he was the only one who would be able to convince the doctors and other CDC authorities. He'd been out of the picture for a long time, yet everyone still knew who he was.

He would need someone to go with him. Alec would have gone himself, but there was a lot he needed to monitor and do around Terminal City. Some more transgenics had arrived at TC, but they were mostly kids and non-humans. X5s had more experience. They knew to lay low. That left Biggs and Nicole. Alec was reluctant to let either of them go, but in the end, Biggs had been the one. Even though Nicole would have had no problem flying the helicopter, Biggs had more experience. Plus, Nicole came up with an idea, and she seriously doubted she would be as good for it as Biggs.

And she could help out with the vaccine. She didn't have much biology knowledge, but between her and Biggs, she was definitely the more 'academic' one.

Not that there was much to be done in that regard. After he had showed them the process of isolating the virus, Dr. Sandeman had demonstrated the process he had created for the making of the vaccine.

He'd explained that since he had known he would probably have very little time, he had designed the laboratory exclusively for that purpose. All they needed to do was dose the virus in, he had said as he demonstrated. They'd watched it drip through a tube, get heated until the distillation of most of the water was completed, then continue down another tube where a yellow fluid was added, after a carefully calibrated measuring; then proceed to a centrifugation chamber, to achieve maximum contact between the two components. After this, the mix was passed to different containers filled with a concentrated saline solution, where it would sit for a day, allowing the antigen to multiply exponentially. 

The yellow fluid was the result of another multistage operation and was basically a solution made up of the very same elements and substances Dix had used to make the vaccine – the doc had recited the names, lots of alcohol's, acids, and other stuff ending in '–ide' – all of which were automatically fed from containers in the refrigerator and precisely measured by electronic scales and densimeters, before being mixed together.

The doctor had left the first batch working before he went away. They would make more once Max was able to give them a little more blood.

The good news was no new outbreaks had started yet anywhere outside Atlanta when the doctor left. Alec was pretty sure there wouldn't be any new ones until the solstice.

In the meantime, they were getting ready.

"Hey, boss!" Mole suddenly said beside him. Alec slowly turned to look at him, and Mole laughed at his daring, nonchalant expression. "You know, I heard the change in your heartbeat, so drop the I-wasn't-startled-at-all act."

"Oh, but see? This is not my I-wasn't-startled-at-all face, Mole. This is my do-it-again-and-I'll-kill-you face." Alec said with a cocky smile.

"Yeah, right. In your dreams, pretty boy." Mole said in a snort.

"Trust me, Mole, beautiful as you are, my dreams do _not_ include you. Ever." Alec winked.

Mole chuckled and handed over the phone, saying "Pretty blonde."

"Thanks," Alec answered, taking the device with his left hand as he quietly returned the gun he was holding in his right hand to its place behind his back, making sure Mole wouldn't see. That would have defeated the whole point of the charade. It had been sheer training that had allowed him to analyze the situation in milliseconds, preventing him from finishing the drawing movement. Mole really _had_ caught him by surprise. 

"Asha, my friend, what gives?" He said into the receiver, smiling. He nodded. "He can? That's terrific. ... When?... Tonight? Uhm... okay, what time again? ... Well, all right. Oh, and Asha? Thanks." He smiled again, closing the connection and turning towards his lizard-looking companion. "Looks like she managed to score us some more guns. Nothing fancy, but more firepower never hurts, huh?" He said, patting Mole's shoulder.

"Wait, wait," Mole said, his eyes big, "pretty _and_ she likes guns?"

Alec burst out laughing, "What? You wanna marry her?"

"Well, actually..." Mole let it trail off, winking at Alec.

The X5 shook his head and, placing a hand on the stair's railing, smiled cheekily. "Mole. Loves. Asha. Mole. Looooves. Aaaaaasha." He sang as he used the railing for impulse, leaping into the upper balcony and away from Mole's threatening cigar.

Lyon, perched in his position four stories up on a terrace, barely even shook his head when he saw a blur of movement coming out of HQ building, followed closely by a gesturing Mole that remained threateningly at the door.

Nothing out of the ordinary.

* * *

When they got to the hospital, there was a group of people already waiting for them. A couple of CDC doctors, the hospital's chief of staff and a Dr. Lewis who had been the first to start treating the patients. They were all wearing yellow suits and looking at them with a variety of expressions from mistrust to hope. 

Biggs carried the box of vaccine into the conference room set up for them. They had brought only one box with them, leaving the rest in the chopper, and they had agreed to present Biggs merely as a driver/pilot to give him a little more freedom of movement.

It was a benefit he cashed in on right away, even before introductions took place. He discreetly made his way out, but not before he placed two small cameras at opposite ends of the room. The signal was not long ranged, but Biggs was carrying the receiver with him and promptly set it up on top of a closet doorframe down the hall. He had another camera on himself and he turned it on as he headed towards the back entrance of the hospital.

He took out his cell phone and dialed. "Luke? Biggs. Are you getting the feed? ... Of all three cameras?.. Okay, how many fingers am I holding up? He asked holding his middle finger up towards himself. He waited two seconds and then started laughing at the exclamations on the other end. "Two point three two seconds delay, not bad at all. All right, moving on. Out." He said as he put the phone away.

Once he was outside, he quietly went around the building until he found what he was looking for.

She was wearing a suit not unlike the one she had been wearing the previous day, except this one was a light shade of green. The skirt was very short, probably to show as much of her silk-clad legs as was possible. The four inch stilettos only confirmed Biggs' first impression: she wanted to look taller. Her furious blonde hair –out of a bottle, no doubt- was tied in a knot at the back of her head today and she was wearing a surgical mask, which had overnight become the hottest fashion accessory in Atlanta.

He waited until she finished another broadcast and the cameraman went back to the truck before approaching her.

She was already sitting on a bench, rummaging inside a small purse.

"I would say something about how amazing it is that women ever find anything in those things," he said, sitting down beside her, "but that would be terribly trite now, wouldn't it?"

She looked up with a frown, starting to say something that never left her mouth as her blue eyes roamed up the body of the man sitting so relaxed, so confidently and then up to the smiling face that went with it. Biggs smiled brighter, knowingly. She had been ready to tell him to get lost, until she saw him. First her eyes opened a bit more, then they turned speculative, and then interested. He knew her ego was definitely flattered that a _young _man was clearly interested in her. She was somewhere in her early thirties, and having a young stud paying attention was always a good thing. He had known that. He also knew she was very ambitious. He would play on that one next.

"I am T..-" she started to say, extending her hand to shake his.

"Tricia Adams, I know," he said, taking her hand between both of his, caressing her palm lightly. "I'm Andrew." It was all he could do not to roll his eyes at her pleased look that he knew her name. Ordinary women were so.. ordinary, he thought as the image of a pair of unreadable gray eyes flashed through his mind. Even Max was unpredictable. He was sure there had to be some interesting humans. He just hadn't met any.

"Are you here to see someone?" She asked and then frowned again. "Why aren't you wearing a mask?"

He laughed softly. "It's not airborne."

"Oh, okay." She nodded, only to immediately say, "Wait. How do you know?"

"I know a lot."

"Do you?" She asked, more cynically. "How come?"

"Well, let's just say I am the guy who flew in a very fine doctor that's come to give a hand, so to speak." He smiled. "You wouldn't believe what's going on."

"Try me." Her eyes were bright now. Her journalist's instincts had kicked in. She placed her free hand on his arm, slowly moving it up and down. "Tell me."

Biggs leaned towards her and tucked a strand of hair that had strayed from her bun behind her ear. "Well, actually, I can do better than that," his fingers remained there, touching the sensitive skin of her neck. "I can show you."

"Oh?" 

"Come on." He got up, still grabbing her hand and walked to the news van. "Hey, can I use your receiver here?" He asked the cameraman, who was in the front seat, eating something out of a plastic bag. He didn't wait for an answer as he changed a couple of connections and started tuning until he found the right wavelength. "Behold." He smiled, making a grand sweeping motion with his arm, a cocky smile on his lips.

The conference room appeared on the screen. Biggs adjusted the volume and the hospital's chief of staff voice came loud and clear through the speakers. "And why on earth should we believe you?"

"Well, let me explain..." Sandeman said patiently. 

Biggs watched Tricia's eyes grow huge. "This thing is recording, right?" she asked the man on the front seat. He nodded, but she wasn't looking. "We have to send it to the station right now. This is rich!" 

"Not so fast, darling." Biggs held up his hand. 

She glanced up at him and smiled cynically, "I should have known you wouldn't be doing it out of your sense of duty to the public. What do you want?"

"Well..." He smiled sensuously and watched her blush. "Right, "he smiled, winking, "what we _need_ you to do, is delay this broadcast." He raised his hand again at her incredulous expression. "Hear me out, will you?"

She glared at him, but motioned for him to continue speaking.

"Okay, here's the deal. You'll get a chance to hear the whole thing, but in a nutshell: this is not a natural outbreak. It was deliberate. This guy, Dr. Sandeman has the cure. But we are not sure these people will believe us. So we need other people to see this. But, and here's the tricky part, the people who started this believe Sandeman is dead, so when they see him, they'll want to come after him. We need to be far away when that happens. This will not stop here. They plan to infect the entire United States and the rest of the world. So we can't afford to lose this guy."

Her expression went from disbelief to astonishment as she read his dark brown eyes and realized he was being completely serious. She sighed. "You are only feeding this to me?" He nodded. "All right. One condition, though."

He frowned and asked: "What's that?" 

"I get an exclusive interview with this doc. I get it, or no deal." She said, crossing her arms and looking defiant.

Biggs looked down, biting his lips and rubbing the back of his neck as if deep in thought. In reality, he was trying not to laugh. Just as expected. He finally looked back into her blue eyes. "Fine. But the same conditions remain. You air it after we are gone. Deal?" he said, extending his hand.

She took his hand and smiled, practically purring as she said, "Deal."

* * *

"Ugh! That was so lame!" Max exclaimed suddenly. She and Nicole were crouching behind a parked blue sedan. It was the only car in the parking lot and they were waiting for the guards to come by on their next round.

The other X5 said, of course, nothing. Max glanced at her briefly, "Come on, you can't tell me it wasn't completely disgusting!" When she still got no answer, she charged again. "Honestly, doesn't it bother you?"

"Why would it?"

Max shook her head in exasperation. "Why? Oh, please! All the insinuations, and the touching, and the making eyes... He was displaying all his charms. Heavy artillery."

"So? I was the one who suggested it."

They had been watching the feed of Biggs' camera before they left Terminal City. And true enough, it had been Nicole's idea to seduce the reporter. She'd seen her on the broadcast and had known she'd be thrilled at the idea of a younger man going after her, and she'd be ambitious enough to go through with the plan. They needed all the press exposure they could get, in order for more people to get the vaccine. But that meant they had seen all the touching, heard all the small talk, watched the lustful expressions. 

"Oh, come on! You telling me you are okay with that tramp putting her paws all over your man?" Her unbelieving look changed into one of alertness. It was time for the guards to pass. Both transgenics leaped over the hood of the car at the same time. Max landed in front of them, Nicole behind.

Nicole immediately took the one on the left, her arm strongly pressing against his windpipe. Her free hand covered his mouth and at the same time made sure he didn't jerk his head around too much. She wouldn't want to accidentally snap his neck.

Max didn't give the guy in front of her time to even blink. The instant she touched the ground, her fist came up – the guy was seriously tall- and found its way towards his nose. It started bleeding immediately, which made the guy raise his hand to try to stop it. Max took advantage of the opening, her knee hitting him on the side, right below the ribs. The guy fell to his knees with a groan of pain. Max was considering her next move when she glanced at Nicole, standing right behind the kneeling guy, looking at her pointedly.

Max sighed. _Always taking away the fun_, she thought as she punched the guy into oblivion. 

Nicole continued the earlier conversation as if nothing had happened, while she tied up the guards. "Of course I am. It's for the good of the mission."

"That is so... You can't be serious." She eyed Nicole, but she seemed completely relaxed as they both ran towards the building. At least as relaxed as Max had ever seen her. Max sighed. "Must be nice not to care."

"Why?" Nicole asked as she stood near the wall. "Does it bother you that she has her hands on Biggs?"

Max looked at her. Had the woman finally lost it? "Why would it bother _me_?"

Nicole laced her hands together. "You seem upset."

"Well, yes. But that's just 'cause I can imagine what I would feel if it was my man instead of him." Max explained. This woman was totally clueless. She placed her right foot between Nicole's hands and jumped. Her own abilities combined with the strength of Nicole's shove made it easy for her to land on the ledge of the fourth floor. She braced herself as Nicole hastily climbed up the rope Max had tied around her waist. 

"Why would your man be in his place?" Nicole asked as she stood once again beside her.

"Well, if he hadn't had so much going on here," she answered as she fumbled with the closing mechanism of the window before her, "it could just as easily have been him."

As they entered, Nicole simply nodded and said "Ah."

Max stepped out into the hallway and knocked on the door directly across. When it started to open, she stepped to the side. Nicole's shot silently struck the guard's thigh. The man looked down, dumbfounded, before falling face first to the floor. The tranquilizer had taken effect immediately. 

"Someone's going to need a nose job," Max commented casually as she stepped over him. Nicole followed her inside the security room. They stood side by side in front of the consoles, disabling silent alarms, not so silent ones, and the recording of the cameras.

Max was pouting and suddenly she turned to look at her partner. "What the hell was that supposed to mean?"

Nicole didn't ask what 'that' Max was talking about. The brunette had been twitching her hands ever since Nicole's laconic last comment. "Nothing. I had assumed something. You confirmed it for me. I acknowledged it with an 'ah'." she said, not taking her eyes off the screens.

Max went back to her task but asked, watching the other X5 out of the corner of her eyes, "What exactly did you assume?"

"That you had not used 'my man' in the general, non-specific way." She answered readily, looking at Max straight in the eyes, before turning back to he console and tapping her intercom. There was a gleam in her eyes as she said, in her normal, serious voice, "All clear. Proceed."

When seven figures clad in black appeared in the screens heading for the parking area of the trucks; Max was still trying to find a decent reply.

* * *

"Hey, Sketch."

Sketchy turned around at the sound of the happy voice and a huge grin lit up his face. "Alec, my man!" He patted Alec on the shoulder, "What's up, dude? You haven't been by work much." He smiled knowingly. "Neither has Max, for that matter... Anything you wanna tell your good friend Sketchy?"

Alec made a wry gesture, "You don't know the half of it." He muttered.

"What was that?"

"I said: yes, actually. Do you mind if we take off, though?" he looked around at the packed back room of Crash. It was certainly not the place for this particular conversation.

"No, man, not at all." 

Sketchy got up and they both headed for the door.

* * *

A street lamp flickered over the battered car parked beneath it. Asha barely registered it. She was used to what passed for Seattle's illumination system. She was busy alternately checking the dark passage to her right and glancing in the rear-view mirror. For the tenth time, she looked at her watch and heaved a deep sigh. It was time. The exchange had gone more swiftly than she had expected, which meant she had arrived early. She didn't mind the dangerous transactions, the sneaking, the fighting. But she hated waiting around. 

She shook her head and got out of the vehicle. She looked around once more and then took a heavy box out of the trunk, awkwardly closing the lid with her elbow. She walked down the passage – a narrow opening between two brick buildings. It was pretty far away from Terminal City, but Alec had no problem moving around the sewers. 

She got to the arranged spot and tapped on the circular iron lid on the floor three times with the heel of her boot. She moved a step away, glancing back in the direction she had left her car. She heard a metallic clank and turned around to greet Alec. 

Except it wasn't his cheeky grin what she found.

* * *

Alec sat on the back of the couch in what used to be Joshua's house. His booted feet were propped up on its armrests, his elbows set on his knees, hazel eyes intent on the boy in front of him, alert, waiting for a reaction.

Sketchy was sitting on the windowsill, his arms around his legs, rocking distractedly. The glass of whiskey Alec had served him a few minutes earlier dangled loosely from his right hand.

"Wow." He whispered softly. "Wow."

Alec's eyes never wavered from his face. So far dumbfounded was the only way he could think to describe the expression he'd seen on Sketchy's face, but he had no doubt it would change any minute now. To astonishment, curiosity, wariness, maybe anger. Or repulsion. He was hoping with all his heart it wouldn't be the last. But he had prepared himself for it nevertheless. 

"So you are telling me you are one of them?" Sketchy finally managed to get out. 

"Yup." He nodded. "I am."

Sketchy's big eyes danced around the room, looking everywhere but at Alec.

"So what.. how.. I don't know what to say. This is.. I .. You…" He shook his head, trying to clear it. 

"I know it's not easy to grasp. But we are still the same people you've known. I am still the guy you have drinks with at Crash. And Max is still the girl who's been your friend and who's always there to give you a hand when you need her." Alec said softly. "Do a bunch of genetically enhanced cells make that much of a difference?"

"Well, you are genetically enhanced to…" he hesitated, "Have.. Have you killed people?" 

Alec's eyes became distant as he nodded. "I did what I had to do. I was.. _am_ a soldier."

Sketchy remained silent, looking at the floor. When he spoke again, however, he didn't seem too worried about that particular confession. 

"So it was all true, even the part about the ones that looked like us. I was right all along." he said. "And you kept telling me it wasn't." He finished, looking at Alec accusingly. 

Alec cringed. "I am sorry man. But it was the safest for all. For us, and for you. There are people chasing us. Not to mention all the 'vigilantes' these last few days." He did feel a little guilty, but mostly relieved.

"No kidding, man." He glanced at Alec suspiciously. "Why are you telling me now?"

"Things have changed. There are a few.. unexpected developments. And we need your help." He answered honestly.

"My help? What can *I* do?"

"Well, here's the deal..."

Twenty minutes later Sketchy was grinning as he shook his friend's hand. "Dude, this is going to be awesome!"

Alec couldn't help smiling back. Sketchy's enthusiasm was contagious, and a nice change from the gloominess that surrounded the transgenics the last few days. "I guess."

"Totally, man! You'll see. So... what is it you can really do? Are you truly that fast?" Sketchy asked looking at Alec who was still standing in front of him.

"Well... see the fire place?" Sketchy turned to look to the other end of the room and blinked. Alec was leaning on the mantle casually. "How was that?" he smirked.

"Wow!" Sketchy shook his head. "Man, you are totally superman! Better than superman! You are The Flash!"

As they both headed for the door, Sketchy suddenly stopped. "Wait a minute... Man you _so_ owe me for all those times you beat me at pool! You cheated!"

Alec laughed. "Sketch, buddy, I am sorry to tell you this, but to beat you at pool none of my special abilities were required. You just suck, man." 

* * *

"What's the matter? Expecting prince charming and got the frog?" Mole asked the blonde, biting his cigar.

Asha raised an eyebrow. "Well, I don't think we are talking about the same person. I mean, whatever he is, he's no prince charming. More like the devil, if you ask me." 

Mole burst out laughing. "Yeah, definitely the same person."

Asha smiled back. "So, are you taking these?" she asked, lifting the box she was carrying a little.

"Oh, sorry." He said, easily taking the case with one of his big hands. He started rummaging through his pockets with the other.

Asha put her hands in the back pockets of her jeans and balanced on the balls of her feet. "So, what happened? Why did he send you?"

"He thought he was being funny." Mole muttered under his breath. He finally found what he had been looking for. He took out a little bundle from one of the pockets and handed it over to Asha.

"Huh?" The big clear eyes gazed up at him inquiringly, as she took the money and slipped it into her boot.

"Nothing. I mean, he had other stuff to do. Something he had to take care of personally." 

"And he figured since I am going to be working with you guys I might as well get to meet you, huh?" She half smiled.

"Yeah...I guess." Mole shrugged.

"Well, it was nice to meet you... er… sorry, you never told me your name." 

"Mole."

She grinned. "See you around, Mole."

Mole stared after her as she walked away. Well, these humans were not so bad after all. Ugly, but not bad, he thought before crawling back down into the tunnels.

* * *

"Alec?" Max asked softly from the doorway.

"I'm awake." He answered, propping himself on an elbow on the couch in HQ's office to look at her. 

She came to stand over him and looked down at him silently. 

"Can I..?" She finally said, averting her eyes.

He moved slightly to the side to make room for her. She sat down beside him and cuddled up to him. "Are you nervous?" He asked.

She simply nodded, biting her lower lip. "Aren't you?"

"Well, we've done all we could." He said, not really answering her question.

"Yeah, I know." She sighed. "I guess we should rest now. Tomorrow is going to be a big day."

"Yeah." He whispered. 

But neither of them closed their eyes as they sat side by side, only their heartbeats disrupting the silence.

* * *

Alec looked around and nodded. Almost everyone was there. Mole, Luke and Dix. Lyon and Pete. Biggs and Nicole. Steve and Jessie – two X5s that had arrived the day before. Ralph, Joe, Lizzie and Regina. Three new X6s Alec couldn't remember the names of. And around a dozen more 'freaks'. Everyone was packing shotguns, except for the younger Xs. There hadn't been enough long guns, and besides, not like they were going to hand a big weapon over to their little traitor. It was bad enough she was carrying a 9mm as it was.

Ralph had been doing a great job of keeping her busy for the past couple of days. Alec smirked as he recalled the young Familiar's black eye and broken fingers from that first sparring session. The eye had been back to normal by the end of the next day. Whether it had healed or was the result of a bottle of make up, Alec didn't know. But he did know her fingers hadn't healed. Even though they didn't seem to produce any pain, they forced her to be extremely careful with her movements, so that it wouldn't show. It had been a great cause of amusement around Terminal City to hand her stuff she had to grab. It was also the reason Alec wasn't _that_ worried about her having a gun.

Things had been pretty hectic for the last couple of days. They'd been working twenty-four hours to make as much of the vaccine as possible. The interview with Dr. Sandeman had been broadcast all over the country. People were demanding to get the vaccine. Even the same people who had started the campaign to get rid of transgenics were asking for it, blatantly ignoring the hypocrisy of their actions. Of course, some people still didn't believe him. But they would. Last night had been the night of the solstice. 

They were in an abandoned building now, in what had clearly been a parking area: a big space surrounded by walls on three sides, columns every ten meters in neat rows. 

The transgenics were standing in formation in front of Max and Alec. Behind them, against the wall that formed the bottom of the 'U' that was the parking space, six trucks were lined up, their driver and passenger's doors opened, ready to take off.

"All right, people," Max said. "Everyone knows what to do?"

"Yes, ma'am!" Was the unified reply.

"Good, we'll give each one of the drivers the destination as soon as everyone is inside the vehicles." Alec said, pacing in front of them, the shotgun lazily balanced in his right hand. They had previously agreed no one would know the destinations of the trucks before for security reasons. Or at least, that was what they had said out loud. "Are the trucks loaded?"

"Number one ready to go." Biggs answered promptly.

"Number two." Nicole followed suit.

"Three." "Four." Steve and Jessie.

"Five." "Six." Shouted Ralph and Joe.

Max and Alec were supposed to ride trucks five and six respectively. The 'nomalies' were going to ride in the back of each truck to avoid being seen for as long as possible. The X6s were riding shotgun.

"Very well, this is it, people." Max looked at each of them in turn and then at Alec, before turning her eyes back to the front. "You all know what's at stake. Good luck. No more waiting now!" She finished, going for her truck.

"That's right, you can tell them to come out now." Alec said, also heading towards the vehicles while looking directly at Regina.

It took her a second to realise what he meant. By the time she did, the transgenics had all moved behind the trucks and were aiming their weapons through the windows of the still opened truck doors towards the open side of the garage.

Alec smiled at Regina's disbelieving face, his shotgun no longer dangling, but firmly held and aimed at her. "What's the matter, cat got your tongue?" He snickered. Then he shouted out loud, "Come on out! We know you're there."

A heavy silence permeated the air as the seconds ticked by. 

The shapes appeared all of a sudden. There were at least twenty-five of them. All dressed in black. All carrying weapons. 

Alec was now standing behind Regina. He watched three more figures emerge from the blackness beyond the building. One was tall, the other rather short, and even though her hair was very short, Alec could tell it was a woman and a kid. They were all wearing brown robes. Out of the corner of his eyes he watched Max, behind the door of the truck to his right, squint her eyes and then nod. So the female was the priestess. And the kid was the telekinesis freak. Good. The taller guy must no doubt be also high up in the cult chain.

The black clad Familiars stayed in position, aiming their guns at them all, while the robed people came nearer. They were pointing no weapons, but their hands were hidden underneath the folds of the fabric. 

Alec casually put his left arm around Regina's shoulders, her back to his chest. He was taller than she, but she provided a nice shield. He still backed both of them up, until they were standing to Max's left. He knew she would otherwise have stepped from behind the door to stand by his side. It was better this way.

When the Familiars were some eight meters away, the woman spoke in a calm voice. "I am sorry, but we can't let those trucks leave this place. Things are bad enough as they are."

"Funny," Alec said colloquially, "I thought I said we knew they were here. Did I not say we knew they were here?"

"You definitely, did. At least, I heard ya." Max tossed back, raising a shoulder. "Perhaps some people need to wash their super-bred ears."

"I thought I did." Alec shook his head, mockingly. But his eyes were cold. Really cold. "I know you think you are superior and all, but seriously, do you really expect us to be stupid enough to have something of importance inside these trucks when we knew you were coming?"

He watched the flicker of surprise in the eyes of the two older Familiars. "Are you thinking: how can this be? We have one hell of a source!" He smirked again, vaguely signalling Regina with the thumb of the hand around her neck. "Basic Counter-Intelligence. Ever heard of it?"

"See? The trucks filled with the vaccine? They already left." Max said smiling sweetly. "Oops!" 

The black clad figures looked at each other and then back at the robed ones, clearly expecting instructions. The Familiars looked at Max and Alec with furious expressions, but said nothing. They were no doubt trying to figure out what to do next. Regina, however, didn't remain silent. 

"He is bluffing. There were no other trucks!" She said, writhing in Alec's grasp to get free. "They couldn't have gotten that past me."

Mole guffawed somewhere behind them, Biggs snickered, Max shook her head condescendingly at Regina. 

"Hate to burst your bubble, princess, but we so did!" Mole said, the words a little slurred from his biting the cigar.

"Wasn't even hard." Biggs put in.

"All we had to do was send you someplace else." Lizzie said. They had let the X6s in on it just the day before, but they felt they had contributed.

"Did you honestly believe we started these vaccines just yesterday?" Biggs did a great job with disdain. 

Max smiled. "Just because you saw no more trucks doesn't mean there weren't any."

Regina was reddening with a mixture of fury and embarrassment every second. 

Alec glanced at the Robed Familiars and saw their furious expressions. "And if you are thinking that only six vehicles were reported stolen from that place, think again. Five thousand years of breeding had to produce at least a few good cells. It only takes a bit of hacking to change the reports." He drawled patronisingly, "We didn't even have to do it. Eyes Only is on our side, remember?"

"That's right. You thought White trashing his place would be the end of Eyes Only? Not even close. I am sure you have seen the latest E.O. bulletins, telling people to get the vaccine, explaining to them what you freak-os are all about..." Max continued, waving her hand dismissively as she talked. 

"So the vaccines actually got made and sent already. Hospitals all over the country have received them by now. Guarded by transgenics, in case any of you loonies decides to try and sabotage it. Oh and yes, we've also sent some of the culture of the antigen for them to make the vaccine to the rest of the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, India, Japan, China... did I leave something out?" Alec smiled. 

"Impossible." Said the Priestess. "There is no way so many transgenics could have left this place."

"Isn't there?" Alec raised an eyebrow "Lady, have you ever heard of subliminal messages?"

"Oooh, yeah!" Max added, "Plenty of them were sent with the E.O. hacks. Except that instead of making people wanna run for a soda, they instructed X5s on what to do, where to be, who to contact... Oh, and if you are hoping some of them didn't see the messages, forget it. All of them recognised that outbreak as intentional. Guess all that training does come in handy after all, huh?" She beamed. "As I said before: Oops!"

The faces of the Familiars were completely red by now, as they searched for something to say.

"Now, we could have a show down here, or you can be good sports and just ...leave?" Alec suggested politely, the tone of his voice clearly stating he didn't really consider this as an option.

"Yes, leaving would be the best choice, I think." A voice said, coming from a door in the wall behind the trucks. Sandeman walked towards them, 627 by his side, until he stood in front of the high spiritual leaders of the cult. "There is nothing else to be done here."

"Sandeman." The woman whispered, a trace of contempt in her voice.

The doctor simply nodded. "In the flesh. We meet again, after all these years."

"I cannot believe you would forsake all that was ever taught to you." The tall man said.

"And I cannot believe you never change." Sandeman replied with a smile.

Alec watched them before briefly looking at Max. She was also carefully following the exchange.

"So Ames was right. You succeeded." The woman said. "Tell me, Benjamin, it all comes from her, doesn't it?" She gestured with her head towards Max, "This all could have been avoided if we had killed her. She is The One."

Sandeman smiled and walked toward Max. "Oh, yes, but you wouldn't have wanted to kill her. It does all come from her." He looked at her fondly and patted her head, before walking back to the Familiars. "She is the one that carries the pure blood, a more resistant type. And now thanks to her, the entire damned planet will get the virus. Even those who would have normally not have come in contact with it, because everyone will be seeking this vaccine." He reached the robed figures and stood among them, "A vaccine that will infect them all." He turned to look at Max with a gleam in his eye. "She is indeed _The One_."


	22. and Turns

A/N: *takes deep breath* Okay, nope, I am not even going to apologize for the delay... you probably don't want to hear it anymore. So, here you have a nice long chapter to make it up to you, and yes, believe it or not, it's the last one. Yup, that's right. AND! I'll post the epilogue in no time. 

A/N: I know it is ancient history by now, but thank you all for your expressions-of-surprise..er..reviews on last chapter's ending. They really made my day. 

A/N3: Infie: thank you so very much! I can't believe you managed to squeeze checking this into your overly busy day. You ROCK, hon! *hugs*

A/N4¨Thank you all for the encouragement and for keeping up with me. So... this is it! 

****

Tough Call

... and Turns

X5-882 watched the doctors carefully, making sure no one tried to pull any tricks. They had all expressed their happiness that the vaccine had arrived, but he didn't want to take any chances. He'd been warned there could be Familiars trying to sabotage their plans.

He had been on a mission inside the US main Military forces when Manticore had been torched. Gathering some intel. Manticore didn't trust the people in Washington to provide them with the real deal, so they had sent soldiers to infiltrate all of the branches of the armed forces as soon as they were old enough to pass for 18 year olds. 882 – or Mikey as he was called on the outside – had been in the ranks for over 7 years now. He was actually 24 or somewhere around that, but everyone thought he was 28. The silver leaf on his shoulder straps identified him as a Lieutenant Colonel, and he really enjoyed it. So he had stayed. Being that Manticore was in fact spying on the Army, no one there, or in Washington, for that matter, really knew who he was. 

When he had seen the Eyes Only broadcast he'd contacted the transgenics behind the message and then arranged for transportation. All of a sudden, a flight to China to re-deploy some units had been imperative, as well as a couple more planes to other locations around the world. The others must have arrived by now also. And must be on the same process of duplicating the culture, so they could make more of the vaccine and spread it around. 

Of course, since he was on an Army mission, he was able to carry all the weaponry he wanted. He was after all, expected to.

He patted the Beretta 92 FS in his waistband. It was a ten shot, 9mm gun. Not the gun with the most damage dealing ability, but he kinda liked the feel and weight of it, and it also went with his 'style'. All-black guns were just not pretty enough.

Of course, he was also carrying the old reliable M-16. There was just no beating the light, compact firearm. Plus, the ammo was one of the cheapest and easiest to get. 

There were a couple of knives hidden among his clothes, and some other pretty weapons. He just loved the US Army. 

He was hoping it wouldn't come to fighting, though. His eyes were continuously shifting from one Asian to the other, making sure none of them were doing something they shouldn't. 

Suddenly his ears prickled up and he had to resist the urge to smile. It had been very, very faint, but enough for him.

For a brief moment he wished someone would make a wrong move. It had been really long since he had been engaged in a real exercise with another transgenic. He kind of missed them. 

His eyes did a quick sweep around and out the windows and then he was back to looking at the doctors. But he had seen the beautiful Chinese girl perched on the terrace of a tall building across the street. And man was she gorgeous! Once this was over, he would not mind getting in touch with his comrade. He was sure they would be able to find nice ways to get... in contact. 

But first the mission. First, everyone needed to take this vaccine.

* * *

Dr. Sandeman took a couple of seconds to bask in the palpable silence that followed his statement. 

First he looked at the transgenics in front of him. He did not want to miss their reactions. Their Manticore instructors would have been so proud of them. Twenty Nine faces had simultaneously turned blank. Completely. As surprised as they must be, it was completely impossible to tell from their faces; except that the stillness itself told him lots.

Next he watched little 'Regina', mostly because she was among the transgenics. He knew that wasn't her real name, but since he didn't really know it, she was still Regina in his mind. Her expression could be described with one word: confusion.

After that, he took a look at the Familiars in black behind him. They were also sporting guarded faces, but the surprise was still apparent in their eyes.

He left the robed leaders for the last. The man, Fen'el'Kahn, was frowning at him. The kid was glaring a very psycho like stare, it was the same expression he'd had since he'd arrived, but instead of centering it at Max, it was now divided between the female x5 and Sandeman himself. He fleetingly wondered what the kid was so angry about, but quickly dismissed the question. He'd also be angry if he'd had to grow up around Fen'el'Kahn – or David Kent, as he was known to the world.

The guy had been very young when Sandeman left the cult, but had already been a stuck-up, pain-in-the-rear, set-in-the-old-ways prick, well on his way to becoming one of the conclave's representatives, 'cause that was the way of the Family. Hierarchy had to be respected. It didn't matter if you were wiser, or if you were a jerk like 'el'Kahn.

Ximena's eyes, on the other hand, were beginning to gleam. Yes, of all the 'next generation' of leaders, she'd always been the smartest. She might not have approved of his plans had she known them in advance, but she definitely appreciated them now. She remained calm, however. A High Priestess _never_ lost her temper or raised her voice. He smiled. He'd always liked Ximena.

"Explain yourself." Kent demanded coldly.

Sandeman shook his head. "David, David, David..." he said, using his 'human' name only because he knew the other man would hate it - the _Familiar_ name stated his position as a leader of the cult, whereas 'David' stated... nothing. "What is there to explain? Even these kids," he waved in the direction of the silent transgenics, "understand what I did."

A vein started to tick in Kent's jaw, but he asked in an even voice. "Are you telling me these... beasts... aided you in contaminating the entire planet?"

"Well, they did." Sandeman smiled, "They just didn't know it. They were under the impression they were saving humanity." 

"Why would they? Humans hate them."

"Well, you never did have much of an understanding of human nature." Benjamin gave him a lopsided grin. "Not all humans do. But more important, _they_ do not hate all humans. They have made friends. They _care_. At least some of them do. I made sure of that." He looked at Max fondly. He had already enlightened the transgenics, when they had asked him what he knew about Max being in a unit while the rest of them trained individually. He had explained to them that the 'unit' had been a project of Lydecker's indeed –not that Sandeman hadn't encouraged him, of course. And that when Max had been created, he had convinced Deck to take her in as well. He had even agreed to use some DNA of a woman Deck knew to ensure he would take her. He had known he was going to need her cooperation to carry his plan at the time of The Coming, he would need her to _care_. Being in a unit would increase the odds of that, since she would learn to care about others at a young age. Of course, when he explained all this he had left out the fact that his 'plan' was not exactly what the transgenics thought it was.

"So you were responsible for the outbreak in Atlanta." The Priestess stated. Sandeman smiled smugly. "We were wondering about that. Exactly what purpose did that serve?"

Sandeman looked at Alec and raised an eyebrow, the invitation evident in his eyes. 

"It was a media drive and a test to secure our trust." Alec answered flatly. "He knew we would suspect him. He also knew we would have started working on the vaccine by then. So he creates a small outbreak. People panic. All the media arrives. We have the vaccine so we take it there, or actually _he_ does, so he gets all the credit and makes sure _you_ guys know who is responsible for this. They try the cure and it works. People start realizing this doctor is cool, the media gets wind of this, people start seeking this vaccine, _our_ minds are put at ease. When the real thing -the one you guys orchestrated- comes along, the vaccine that _he_ prepared, is ready to be sent out. And he has an army of highly trained, genetically enhanced soldiers to make sure it gets to everyone, whatever it takes."

Benjamin nodded, smiling. These kids were so good. It really was a shame they would all have to die.

"If you are so highly trained, so very superior and intelligent, how could you have been fooled like that?" David asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Easily. He never lied to us." Max answered, still completely expressionless, but for the same slight light of understanding that matched the one in Alec's eyes. 

"He knew we would be able to tell if he was lying, so he didn't." Alec finished. 

Sandeman smiled blandly at him. "I wouldn't have dreamed of insulting your intelligence by lying. After all, *I* created you, I know what you are capable of."

"You've always been so full of yourself, Benjamin." David said, looking at him with disdain. "You always thought you were smarter than us, but you left a tiny little detail out," he raised an eyebrow.

"What's that?"

"Atlanta. All those people in Atlanta have received the cure, the one these creatures made. They will not take this other vaccine. They will all survive."

Sandeman grinned. "They are irrelevant, David."

"Irrelevant?" The tall Familiar repeated.

Instead of answering, Sandeman turned to look at Max and Alec. Alec's left eyebrow was slightly furrowed, indicating that he was thinking more than likely. It went back to its initial position. Sandeman's grin got bigger. "See, David? He already knows. Care to do the honors?" He asked Alec with a grand inclination of his head.

"They are irrelevant, because they are only a couple of million people, all isolated in one area. They'll be confused and terrified. And they are weaker than you." Alec recited. "And even when they stop being scared and decide to fight for their lives - that is, if you haven't killed them by then -, who will they fight against?"

"Us. It'll be against us." Max spat out. "The vaccine was made out of transgenic blood, by transgenics. So they'll fight us. And it doesn't matter who wins. There'll be casualties on both sides, and which ever side loses, will be one less problem for you guys to worry about."

"Brilliant, is it not?" Sandeman asked. 

"Very well thought out, I would say." Alec conceded with a nod.

-----------

Logan squirmed a little watching the scene. He had been in awe the whole time. At first, he'd had a hard time believing it was actually happening, but there was evidently no denying it now. It was playing right there, under his very nose.

And quite a surreal scene it was. The familiars looking pleased, had moved slightly off of their covered positions, some parts of their bodies were visible around the columns they had been using. They were probably trusting that the shock would be too much for the transgenics to actually do something about. Besides, it was a must in any soldier's manual to get all the information before starting to shoot, which made it a pretty safe bet that the trannies would not start with the shooting just now.

The 'uber' familiars were nodding, the kid was smirking a pretty evil smile. It was especially scary seeing it in the middle of that angelic face. The woman was very serious, reflecting on everything that was being said. The man's face was a continuous contradiction. It went from utterly pleased to furious. He was having trouble accepting the fact that it was Sandeman who had made it all possible for them.

Then there was Regina. Logan had really enjoyed watching her expression as she had learnt she had been used, utterly, completely. Too bad it had not lasted. And now she was smiling scornfully, even despite the fact that she was being held very unceremoniously by Alec and a shotgun was placed near her right temple.

The transgenics were still completely expressionless. They even looked calm. One just had to take Alec's last words into consideration. Just a simple statement, no more than that.

Logan sighed and continued to watch. He couldn't shake the feeling of detachment, as if it was a movie playing, and not a world-changing event that affected him.

---------

He was truly enjoying this. It was the moment he had been waiting for most of his life. And it was even better than he had imagined it would be. The faces of the Familiars were priceless.

"Too bad there will not be that many of us left anyway, that would have made the fight more interesting, huh?" Mole asked from behind his cigar.

Dr. Sandeman's face wrinkled into a sad smile for a moment. "So you guys also figured that out?"

"Yes, we did."

"I thought you might. But some of you still might survive, you may develop the correct antibodies for Max's mutated version of the virus.."

"True. And you never said we were immune, you just said you told Renfro we were. And you also said you had not told her the entire truth about your plan. Besides, when you said 'you' you were looking directly at Max. Conveniently imprecise English pronouns, huh?"

"Yes, they can be very helpful, I'll admit. I imagined you would have tested your blood, but I didn't know for sure. And I wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt. If you hadn't tested it with her version of the virus, you would think that you were immune and you wouldn't take the vaccine that would make you sick for sure. Most of you would be able to resist the older strain that the familiars put in the watercourses. Well, the ones that you didn't manage to stop, of course. I wanted to give you a chance."

"So very considerate of you, doc." Biggs inserted sarcastically.

"I'd like to think so." He answered. He tried to take the self-righteousness from his voice, but wasn't sure he had managed. "Unfortunately, if you kids realized you weren't all immune, you all probably took the vaccine already, huh?" A brief nod was all the answer he got. Oh, well, cannot be helped now. It will kick in about three or four days after receiving the dose – I didn't want people to panic and stop taking the vaccine, after all."

"Of course." Nicole spoke for the first time since he'd arrived.

Sandeman smiled at her. "You've been wonderful, dear. I couldn't have asked for anyone better to have on my side all these years and to carry along all my messages."

-------------------

The sun was shining brightly , heating up the concrete surface of the narrow avenue. The faded tones of the multicolor house fronts seemed to be gleaming. 

It all reminded Anita of the First of January. Or maybe Labour Day, or the day of the Virgin. No cars were passing by, and the sidewalk on the Southern side of the street was strangely empty. No street vendors, no filthy carts, no sweaty men shouting their 'ofertas' at the top of their lungs.

Yes, it really did seem like a holiday, unless you looked at her side of the street, which was busier then ever. Not with bargain opportunities, but with an endless line of people that went on for as far as the eye could see. 

Anita sighed and looked down at the tiny little tanned hand pulling from her calf-length skirt. "Mami, me va a dolé'?" 

"No, bebé, es sólo como un mosquito. Pero ya verás como te pones bien apenitas la recibas, ¿si?" Anita reassured her little boy that it wasn't going to hurt, and that this vaccine would make him all right.

Anita looked back up at the streets of Asunción, Paraguay and sighed again.

Across the world, inside a spotlessly clean hospital waiting room in Frankfurt, Ulf Schmidt was glancing at his clock again. Such an inconvenience... _Stupid people_, he thought as he watched the broadcast of that doctor again. They had been repeating it over and over every fifteen minutes. Ulf already knew it by heart. The German version of the voice over and the English version he had finally deciphered. It had been a good way to pass the time while he waited, trying to hear the English words under the perfectly accented German translator. But he had finally managed to do it. So now he was back to being exasperated. 

"Bitte, setzen Sie sich, wir werden balde ihnen bei Namen rufen." The nurse said again. And sure enough, someone else kept calling out names, just as she said they would. But there were over 500 people around, just in this waiting room.

He sighed once more and went back to his laptop just as the anchorwoman announced that there was more on the Familiar Virus. Great, the speech again, Ulf thought with a shake of his head. He ignored the screen and tried to focus on his work.

-----

After hearing the doctor's last words Nicole remained impassive as usual and listened on, her eyes continued to dart around the place as they had been all along. Taking in everyone whether they were Familar, X series, transhuman or whatever. "Thank you, doctor," she said finally, noticing he was waiting for a reply, "was just doing my job."

"Indeed you were." He chuckled. "You never change, huh? Always the perfect soldier." He said in a patronizing voice. It made her wonder for a few moments if some sarcasm had slipped into her voice. The absurdity of the thought made her dismiss it instantaneously. 

"It's what I am, sir." She just answered.

She watched Sandeman hesitate for a second. She knew what he was thinking. Whether to let the transgenics wonder if she had betrayed them all along or to tell them the truth directly. Leaving the doubt hanging would be the wisest choice. The less you reveal, the more you have to your advantage. But she knew he wouldn't. He had been waiting for this moment for many years and he needed to be the star of the show. It was okay by her. It would not matter one way or the other. Not anymore.

"I guess you want to know if she was aware of my plan, huh?" Sandeman asked smiling. Nicole placed a mental check in her mind. Humans. She pondered on the fact that this would actually be the perfect time for her to smile. The opportunity was ideal. Yet, putting aside the fact that she never actually did smile, and no matter what the rational part of her brain was saying, she felt absolutely no inclination to do so.

Max seemed to decide this was the perfect time for her sassy self to return. "Not really." She said, one hand on her hips, looking at the fingernails of the other.

Sandeman chuckled. "Well, she wasn't." He said, "She was told the same carefully selected truths all along. Bits and pieces here and there. I knew she'd put them all together once she met you, even when she didn't entirely believe me back then." He paused to look at Nicole, "And she did not disappoint me."

"That was what I was trained to do." Nicole replied.

"Yes, dear, I know. So don't feel bad, any of you. I knew exactly what buttons to push." He said, that patronizing voice again. Why did people always do that. Sure, it looked like he had all the cards in his favor, but did he have to act so conceited? Nicole had never understood that. She was saved from analyzing the subject further.

"All of this is cool and all, but now what?" Biggs suddenly exclaimed from behind the bulletproof door of his truck. "Can we start the shootout to see how many of each other we can kill?" he asked cheekily.

"As we all said before, what good would that do?"

"Well... we'd get to see all your ugly mugs disappear..." Mole countered.

"Truth, but as you know, some of you might still survive. Would you seriously jeopardize the chance of having a more organized attack on Familiar forces in the future?"

"There'd be a few less priests...?" Biggs offered halfheartedly, vaguely aiming his shotgun at the robed figures.

"And what good will three less priests do? There are many others." Ximena said evenly.

Nicole watched Alec's crooked smirk and left eyebrow as he whispered, "Are there?"

----------

It was a dark cave lit only by the flickering lights provided by several torches located on the cavernous walls. Rustic paintings adorned said walls. Intricate designs, the biggest of which had a slight resemblance to a lion. Shadows danced as the people inside the cave contorted to the rhythm of their humming.

A slender woman in her forties with paint all over her bald head and arms appeared to be leading whatever ceremony this ritual was. Many older people surrounded her, their heads bent down, their brown robes hissing as they moved on the dirt.

There were around one hundred others dancing in neat rows, facing the master of the ceremony.

Outside, three shadows moved without making the slightest noise. 346 checked their positions and then went back to staring at the cave's interior. Everything was the same. All was under control. He tapped his microphone twice and only after getting the 'message received' sign did he allow a small smile to touch the corner of his lips.

These Familiars were toast, even if they didn't know it.

On the bright side, they would go out dancing, 346 guessed it would be a good way to die... for some.

-----------

"Ah! So you've taken care of them, huh?" Sandeman asked, unable to hide the pleasure in his voice.

"That was why the location of the main ceremony casually slipped out, wasn't it?" Alec challenged.

"Of course, of course." Sandeman conceded.

Logan watched the high priest – David, according to what Sandeman had called him- David's eyes open wide. They looked like saucers. "You revealed the location of the ... ?"

"It will do the world good to be rid of those narrow-minded obsolete personas." Sandeman interrupted him smugly. 

"You, you.."

"Oh, shut up, David. All of this is evidently beyond you." Sandeman cut him off again. "This whole plan is way beyond anything you could have even dream of coming up with. You are no match for me. In fact, no one is. These kids are the closest there is. Then again, they were created by me."

As much as he hated to do so, Logan had to admit he was right. He himself had discovered plenty of evil schemes in his work as Eyes Only. But this was way over his head. He doubted anyone could have discovered such a twisted and well thought out ploy.

Well, anyone but _him_, he shook his head with a smile as he listened to the guy start to speak. Damn cheeky, know-it-all bastard.

-----------

"Yes, that is true. And that is exactly the reason you should have known better." Alec was saying calmly.

Sandeman looked a little surprised for a tenth of a second, but then he smiled confidently again. "Meaning?"

"Meaning that we were built to be smart, smarter than other humans. And that includes you." Alec made a light movement of his left hand and twenty semiautomatic shotguns were fired. In less than two seconds, all the black clad Familiars were down, too surprised by the sudden attack to have had time to duck back behind their cover... and now twenty nine guns were trained at the four remaining Familiars, not counting the one still resting against Regina's temple. "Did you really think you could fool us in the making of the vaccine? Did you really think we would trust you enough not to check the contents of all the containers in that fridge? That just because the label stated they contained chlorine dioxide we would believe that? And even if we had not thought of doubting the contents, have you forgotten what a developed sense of smell some of the older transgenics have? We were made and _trained_ to think of every possibility." He paused, his expression blank. Max watched him in awe. He looked so poised, so relaxed. He was so sexy. She knew this wasn't the time to be thinking that, but she couldn't help it. He had a way of crawling under her skin. And he looked so incredibly hot when he was taking charge. "So yes, the vaccine we sent out to the world is the real thing. It will be the salvation of all the humans out there that could have been exposed to the virus." Max watched Sandeman's face become more aggravated with every syllable that came out of Alec's mouth. 

"So, yeah, doc, sorry, but your perfect evil master plan... it kinda went down the drain." Max added cheerily. 

The priestess and priest looked at each other, at the bodies behind them, at Sandeman and back at the transgenics, completely at a loss for words. It had all been so sudden they hadn't had time to react yet. They had certainly not been expecting the transgenics to shoot, not when everything had seemed to be going so well.

"No billions of humans dying, no more priests dancing in a poorly lit cave..." Biggs put in, smiling. "And, hey, Mole! Looks like we'll get our wish with these guys after all!"

Sandeman had managed to compose himself and after a deep breath said, "You cannot kill me. You'd make a martyr out of me. After all, _I_ am the one everyone saw as responsible for the vaccine. If you kill me, I'll still be known as a hero."

"Hmm... he does have a point there, doesn't he?" Dix asked with a frown.

"Well, that's certainly what it looks like." Luke supplied, nodding enthusiastically. Max had to give them points for their acting.

"Indeed, that's what it _ looks_ like." Alec drawled, not taking his intense hazel eyes off the doc. 

"See that over there? Looks like a crack on the ceiling?" Max supplied, "Camera. That over there?" She pointed to another dark spot on a wall. "And of course, these." She finished signaling a button on her black leather jacket. "The great Eyes Only is recording the whole thing." 

"And over there, behind the wall, is lovely Tricia Adams, reporting live for WKNN and the whole wide world!" Biggs informed readily. 

"Amazing how you never expect the same tricks you pull to be used against yourself, huh?" Alec asked softly. He was smirking lightly, but Max could see the iciness of his stare. "But you are right. We don't want to kill you. You'll be judged by humans. Let them decide what your fate shall be. It is a soldier's duty to catch the crooks. Let the civilians pass judgement." 

"You think they'll listen to you after what you just did?" David raised his voice and pointed at the fallen bodies of the dead Familiars.

"This was a war, and we did what we had to. But, yes, they'll judge us too. We just will probably not abide by their decisions. You guys won't be so lucky."

Max's eyes suddenly darted towards the kid, he'd been silent throughout the entire exchange, not even moving. But she watched his eyebrows draw together now. There was no time to think. As she stepped forward, she could feel the doors of the tracks begin to rattle. And she felt the gun in her hand shaking for no apparent reason. She wanted to shout a warning to Alec, who was completely focused on Sandeman, his grip on the gun on Regina's temple dead strong and steady. That was when she realized what had struck her as odd in the first place. _His_ gun was not shaking. 

"I would not waste my energy if I were you." Nicole said to Max's right. 

"What's the matter, kid? Mind trick not working?" Biggs completed the thought with a smirk. "You may have powers over certain things, but not over our minds. We were trained for this. We've had our fair share of psy-ops freaks prying into our brains. After a while, we learned how to stop them. And sure, some mind tricks _could _eventually get to us _if_ we were not expecting them. But not you, and not now." 

The little face became almost purple with outrage and he concentrated even harder. Max watched the guns of several of the fallen Familiars raise in the air and move unsteadily in their direction.

"Oh, for the love of..-" Alec murmured as he shoved Regina in the kid's direction, hard, causing them both to fall in a tumble of limbs. The guns made a series of clattering noises as they fell. But even before that, Nicole was by their sides, gently pressing the little Familiar's carotids. There really weren't that many mind tricks to pull off when you were unconscious.

Ralph had also moved, and even though her speed was not comparable with the X5, she was there before Regina had a chance to recover. She pulled her up by the elbow and slapped her hard, before pressing her gun to the Familiar's side. "Just give me an excuse." She said softly, no emotion on her beautiful fair face. The words were whispered too quietly for the TV mikes to catch, but not too low for Max.

"Now Andrew and Jessie will escort you to your new facilities here in Terminal City along with the TV crews. You will be given all the comforts a regular prisoner has," Max paused for an ironic smile, "and the place is close enough to the City's limit for the police to come question you until we figure a way to get you off our hands." 

"Now wait a..-"

"Meeting's adjourned. Get moving." Alec said unceremoniously, and then, as an afterthought, added "Yo, buddy, what do you say we place the two gentlemen together in one cell. That should be interesting." He winked.

Biggs chuckled, "You are the boss, boss."

As she watched the Familiars being led, or carried in the kid's case, away, Max moved a little to be by Alec's side and sighed. She hated to admit it, but it felt a bit anticlimactic. 

Mole wasn't so diplomatic about it. "Well, this sucks!" He exclaimed. It made every head turn his way. "I still think shooting 'em woulda been the thing to do."

"That would have been too easy." Alec said quietly. "Let them spend the rest of their lives in prison, knowing everything they wanted, everything they fought for, the purpose of their lives and the lives of thousands of years of generations will never come to pass. Let them wallow in their failure. Let them experience a world full of humans."

It wasn't so much the words as the look in his eyes when he said it that caused chills to run through Max's body. "Besides, it would have made us the monsters everyone thinks we are." She said, raising her voice a little. 

"Right, cause when they see this face they won't still think that of me." Mole smiled, his teeth pressing the cigar.

That actually made most of the transgenics bite their lips to stifle a chuckle. All except Lizzie, who moved to stand up in front of Mole, hands on her hips, a daring look on her eyes and announced in her fresh but loud voice. "Well, whoever thinks that, will have to have a few words with me!"

If the declaration hadn't been enough, the embarrassed look on Mole's face would have done the trick. 

The group of twenty odd transgenics burst out laughing. 

Max smiled as she watched Mole go ruffle Lizzie's hair, Luke hugging Dix, some of the others shaking hands. Whether they had showed it or not, they had been all very tense. It was good to let go of that.

She turned her head to look at Alec beside her. He was looking at her with an unreadable expression, but then he broke into that beautiful smile of his and he winked at her.

She smiled back at him, a smile that lit up her face. 

-------------

Sketchy's camera made its typical snapping sound, some yards away of where the action had taken place. And that was the image that would be printed on the cover of most papers all over the world the next day. The two proud, striking transgenics in the front, beautifully smiling at each other; the lizard guy kindly ruffling a little redhead's hair in the background while she smiled adoringly back at him; a pale, weird looking dude shaking yet another handsome X5's hand; three kids that looked like they couldn't be over 16 standing on the top of armored trucks, guns tucked on their belts, their hands up in celebration. The image was so full of contrast, so innocent and at the same time chilling, the transgenics looking so alive and sweet, yet well armed and surrounded by camouflage and Army gear.

As if his exclusive interview were not enough by itself, he just knew this picture would go a long way, and he was the only photographer around. Sure, they would have the screen-captures, but nothing compared to a professionally taken 35mm shot. 

After tomorrow, everyone would know who Calvin S. Theodore was. And he had Alec and Max to thank for that. He would not forget that fact.

---------------

Original Cindy watched, fascinated by the scene unfolding before her. She had to rub her eyes to really believe it was happening. Her Max and Alec were sitting on adjoining chairs in front of a one by two wooden table. Max had her elbows on the scratched surface, her chin resting on her hands, her legs far apart as she straddled the chair.

Alec was leaning back on his own chair, sprawled on it would be a better description, his left hand tapping a slow rhythm on the table, his right hand playing with a strand of Max's hair. That made OC smile. Neither of them seemed to be aware of the fact and Cindy figured no one else in the room was seeing it either. It was just the angle that she herself was sitting at that allowed her to glimpse at the distracted gesture.

But that wasn't what made the scene surreal, after all, she had worked to that end. Her friends may never realize it, and maybe it hadn't been that much, but she sure as hell had helped those two. Alec may have a clue, she had told him directly what she was doing. _Some_ of the time. But Max had no idea. It was best that way. Original Cindy needed no thanks from anybody. She was just glad her boo was happy.

So it wasn't the easiness they had around each other what made the scene bizarre. Or the fact that they were the center of attention - those two always seemed to be in the middle of everything. 

And it wasn't the gray-haired woman looking dead serious in one corner of the room, eyes sweeping around as if on guard for trouble while everybody else seemed relaxed and happy. Or the weird-ass looking transgenics around that made doggie-dog look completely 'normal'.

Nope, it wasn't any of that. 

It was the fact that the focus of everyone's attention, her own and that of the rest of the room, was resting on...Sketchy.

That's right. Sketchy was running the show. He was sitting on the other side of the table, a recorder in front of him, the camera laying to his left, a pad and a pen in his hands. He was asking questions. He was actually interviewing Max and Alec. 

And to make things even more unreal, he was doing a pretty darn good job of it. Original Cindy was impressed. Sketch was asking all the right questions, not only the technical ones. Like when he'd asked about the drug swap the doctor had made to turn the vaccine into an infectious spreader. The entire explanation had been way over her head, the only thing she had gotten out of it had been that the transgenics had known about it, so they let the doc make one batch before he went to Atlanta. They'd known he would check the results, and then had changed all the substances and the process slightly so that the right vaccine was produced, but taking advantage of the state of the art lab the doc had built. 

But Sketch had also asked the right _other_ questions. About how they felt. About what they wanted, and he was interlocking both types of questions quite seamlessly. She hadn't known Sketchy had it in him. But she had no doubts the boy would make it as a journalist. He was _good_.

"So how did you know about Atlanta? Because that was convenient to you, I mean, with the doc away, you were able to make the swap. But it was a hell of a lot to plan if you didn't know beforehand." He was asking right now.

"We didn't know. Not until a couple of days before the trip. We had guessed he was going to stage something big, something to get everyone's attention, but we had no clue as to what that would be." Max admitted.

"It was another error in judgement by our doc that let us find out." Alec said, his eyes getting a little colder.

"Wait, I thought you said the doctor arrived the day of the outbreak in Atlanta. So how was it his error a couple of days before that that let you know?" Sketchy asked, narrowing his eyes.

Cindy could see the flash of recognition in Alec's eyes. He was also impressed, although she was sure it was much more apparent in her own face.

"It wasn't something that happened a couple of days, but actually many years, before." He said looking at Nicole with a half smile. "In his conceited 'I-made-you' way of thinking he forgot one tiny little detail." He paused to look back at Sketchy. "We may be genetically enhanced, we may be really smart, and well trained and almost perfect soldiers. But we are also human. At least a large part of us is. And we have human emotions."

Cindy stole a glance at the woman Alec was evidently talking about, trying to find a vestige of humanity. But Alec had sure as hell picked the least likely subject to drive his point home. The woman looked like she was made of stone.

Sketchy was eyeing Nicole in much the same way. Alec smiled. "My point exactly. People tend to forget that. Especially with someone like her, who shows so little. That's what happened to Sandeman, she was such a perfect unemotional soldier, he forgot she was human too."

"At the beginning we weren't sure what side she was on. We knew she wasn't lying, but then, neither did Sandeman ever, and look how that turned out." Max seemed to take pity on them all and decided to clarify Alec's words. "She could be in the same situation we were, but she could also be working with him... she sure as hell has no warm feelings towards humans."

"But the day before Sandeman arrived, she said something to me. I don't think she even meant it that way, we were talking about something completely different, but she said: 'I redirected my anger at the real source of the problem.' That's when I realized it... Who was that but our dear doctor? Think about it. She was a little girl, a soldier, but a girl nevertheless. And she was taken from the only place she knew, the only people in the world that were like her, to baby-sit this guy. She was okay with it at first, it was what we were trained to do. But then she realized she was there for a different purpose, this guy was feeding her all these stories because he wanted her help. She had been taken away from the only place she knew because of this guy's plans. She directed her anger at the real source of the problem, all right." He looked at Nicole again with a faint smile in his lips. She looked straight back at him, but nothing, nothing at all was visible in those gray eyes. For all she showed, Alec could have been talking about the weather. Cindy shook her head. 

"After that, it was just a matter of asking her. She got us in touch with 256- the X6 kid that remained there after the doc left-, and he reported that indeed, Sandeman had made a shipment to a colleague of his in the State of Georgia. He had a lab in the basement of the house where he had massive amounts of the virus, just in case the whole 'transgenic' plot didn't work out." Max continued the explanation.

"As I said, he forgot our individuality. Our ability to think for ourselves. Nicole had known about this lab for years. And she hadn't been fooled by his proclamations of it being the cure. If that had been the case, why bother looking for Max?" Alec finished. "It was an easy mistake to make, but a mistake nonetheless. Assuming that just because she shows no emotions she doesn't have any. _We_ know better. After all, we are experts on it too." He said, his usual smirk in place, the playful tingle in his eyes, his perfect 'Alec' face, Cindy thought. Hadn't he fooled her with that attitude? Hadn't he fooled everyone with it? Hadn't Max hidden her true feelings from her as well? For many years? 

She missed the rest of Sketchy's interrogation, she was lost in her own thoughts.

* * *

Max hugged her friend tightly, not wanting to let her go, but she knew she had to. It wasn't a good idea to expose humans to the bio-hazards of Terminal City, and she had been here for some hours already. Of course, she hadn't been able to keep Cindy away once she'd found out Sketchy would be there.

They had agreed. It was good to have a friendly face around when one knew one would be facing the enemy. In the end, all had gone well. But still... it took just one bullet to kill someone. She was sure had any of the Familiars attempted anything, transgenic speed would have beaten them to it, but you never knew. For the most part they'd been protected by the trucks, and yes, Alec had been using Regina as cover, but he was taller and what if a bullet had f..-

Max forced herself to stop. It was over. They were all okay. 

And that was it.

She smiled as she watched her friend hug Joshua. She'd been a great help in that department as well. It had been hard to bring Joshua in on everything. They had done that only a couple of hours before the showdown. They had debated long and hard about it. First, on whether to tell him or not – Max had not wanted to, Alec had insisted they had to- and after that, on _when_ to tell him. Joshua would be hurt, and even though Alec trusted that Joshua would be able to behave like a soldier if it was necessary, there was the tiny, little detail of whether or not he would deem it necessary. She knew the rest of them wouldn't doubt it for a second, not when it was about choosing a human over one of their own. At the same time she also knew that had she been in that position and had someone told her that, say, Cindy or Logan was plotting against her, she would not have believed it. No matter how much evidence they showed her, she would have needed to see it for herself. So they had told the big guy right before it all happened. Cindy had stayed there with him while he watched everything unfold on HQ's and Logan's screens. He had been hurt. Deeply. But Alec had been right, Joshua was strong. It would continue to eat at him, but he would learn to live with it. Which didn't make watching the betrayed look in those big sad eyes any easier.

"So, will ya be visitin' your boo now that you're a big TV star?" Cindy asked her with a wink.

"You bet your pretty ass I will!" She countered, her chin raised.

"Well, you better do, hon, 'cause this" OC said, patting her behind, "ain't nothin' to be givin' away lightly." She turned around once more, and after whispering something in Alec's ear that made him raise his eyebrows and smile, she hugged Max quickly one more time and went inside the sewer tunnel, through which Luke would lead them – Cindy, Logan, Sketchy and Miss Adams- to the 'civilized' world.

Max sighed as she watched the brown curls disappear into the darkness.

They may have saved the day, the may have spared the human race from a painful and certain death. But they were still pariahs, still abominations of nature, some_thing_ that should have never existed. 

She didn't harbor any hopes that after today they would be accepted.

She glanced at Alec standing a few feet away and recognized the same thoughts in his eyes. It was far from over. Today might have gained them some gratitude, but not with all humans, and even with some of them it would be temporary. Sooner or later they would find an excuse to attack them again. That was just human nature. And they would have to stick together and prepare for it.

They still hoped that eventually, things would settle down, and they would work to that end. And Sketchy's interview was just a first step to start with.

Nicole's approach distracted Max from her thoughts and a smile started to form on her lips as she watched the other X5 walk their way. 

"Well, well, well, look who's here..." she said, grinning widely.

Nicole, naturally said nothing. Alec was biting his lips to hide a smile. They all knew she was aware of what Max was talking about.

Just a few minutes earlier, before everything was set for the humans to go, Miss Tricia Adams had been looking around, asking for Andrew –they'd all been very careful not to call him 'Biggs' at all during the whole thing. At which point a completely impassive Nicole had walked up to her and informed her that '_Andrew is busy right now, but Luke will be leading you out of TC in a moment'_, before continuing with her very blank expression, '_And if you ever so much as lay one finger on Andrew's hair, I am going to dismember you, slowly, keeping you alive all the way'._ Only to finish with,_ 'Oh, you should start getting your things together. We don't want you to be exposed to all the germs around here, that could be dangerous to your health'._

"What happened to the whole: 'I am cool with it.' 'It's for the good of the mission.', huh?" Max asked Nicole now, raising a daring eyebrow.

"The mission is over." Was the simple answer, delivered smoothly and with no emotion at all. "I'll be finishing things over at HQ." The gray-haired X5 added before turning to leave. She left an open-mouthed Max and a smirking Alec behind.

"Oh. My. Goodness!" Max whispered, "I cannot believe it!"

"What? That she was making fun of herself?" Alec smiled.

"No! Well, yeah! But, but... was that a... _smile_?" she asked bewildered.

"See? Now you are teasing me." Alec joked.

"No! I swear, I _swear_, I saw a corner of her mouth lift! I did!" She protested before she realized he was actually the one teasing her. "You saw it too!" She accused him.

"Did not. I just saw a very weird and slight movement of her lips. I wouldn't dare to call that a smile."

Max laughed, "You are right. But who would have thought, huh?"

"Who would have thought what?" Asked a chirpy voice behind them. They both tuned to watch Biggs saunter into the room and had to stifle a laugh. 

"Nothing." They said in unison. 

Biggs frowned slightly, probably suspicious that they were both easily agreeing on something, but then dismissed it with a shrug.

"Anyhow... where's the lovely Miss Tricia?" he asked.

"Lovely? With that _yellow_ hair?" 

"Now don't be like that, Maxie. Brown hair doesn't look _that_ bad on you..." Alec teased her. A snort was all the response he got. 

Biggs seemed to decide not to get into that one and said, continuing his previous statement, "I am ready to lead Tricia back outside like I promised. And maybe I'll escort her to her hotel suite, after all... I wouldn't want her to feel lonely in a strange city..." he trailed off, a sparkle in his eyes.

"Tough break, boy." Max ignored the raised eyebrows at her choice of nickname, "Luke already took them all back."

"Really? Well, I guess I'll just have to settle for the visit then. And I was so looking forward to a romantic stroll through the sewers..." 

That made Alec chuckle and, although she fought hard to keep it from showing, it made her smile as well.

"I would reconsider that if I were you." Alec said.

"Uh huh." Max nodded.

"Reconsider? Why?" Biggs looked at them puzzled.

"Well, Nicole was just here. She told us to tell you she'd be at HQ." Alec answered casually.

"Ah, yes, the lovely Nicole." Biggs said with a wistful look in his eyes. Max actually saw them glaze over for a second, before they refocused and the playful glint was back in them. "Now _that_ will be interesting and something I am very much looking forward to. But as you just said, she'll be in HQ, wrapping things up. No reason to interrupt her. I'll just let her finish peacefully. No harm if I go distract myself while she does so, now, is there?" he winked.

"Well, _I_ don't see what the harm would be," Alec nodded, earning himself a strong punch in his shoulder. Max was not even sorry when he trained his puppy dog eyes at her, he had deserved it. "But as you can see, Max doesn't see it that way." He said with a lopsided smile, "And neither does Nicole."

"You think?" Biggs asked eagerly. And then sobered up, "Nicole? Are we talking about ice-queen, no-emotions-at-all, aloof Nicole?"

"Well, she certainly gave us the impression that she wouldn't want you to be touching a certain reporter." Max said with a sweet smile.

"Really? What gave you that impression?"

"Well, I think her promising to ...what was it she said? Dismember?" Alec turned to Max for confirmation. She nodded. "Yeah, dismember Miss Adams was a very good indicator." He finished with a grin.

Biggs looked from one to the other. They were both looking back at him with raised eyebrows. "Son of a..-" He whispered. 

"What? You don't think she'll keep you occupied enough?" Max challenged him, more to tease him than anything else. He had tried to conceal it, but she had seen the pleased look in his eyes.

Biggs shook his head to snap out of it and answered readily, "Oh, no, I know she will. It's just, well, a guy likes to have his options, you know?"

Max glared at him. A look that switched to Alec as she heard his next words.

"Sure. Well, maybe you can find some other options. I mean, having a dead 'distraction' is not that much fun. And think Miss Adams would agree on that."

"Yeah," Biggs sighed dramatically, "Oh, well, I guess I'll have to settle for some unbridled transgenic lovin'... for now." He finished with a wink, as he turned towards the door Nicole had used a few minutes before. He didn't seem upset at all, Max noticed distractedly. Good for him. 

"Ha! This ought to be entertaining." Alec commented once Biggs was out of sight. He turned to look at her when she didn't answer, only to find her still glaring at him. "What?" He said with his most innocent look.

"Sure? _Sure?_ 'A guy likes to have his options' and you answer _sure_?" She stared at him, her hands on her hips.

"Aw, come on, Max. You know you are more than enough for me." He said with a winning smile. When she still continued to glare, he added. "Besides, if I didn't say things like that, I wouldn't be the Alec you love, now, would I? I wouldn't be this charming, irresistible, smart-alecky, pain-in-the-er.. neck Alec." He beamed at her, a sexy pleading in his eyes.

She looked at him seriously before saying simply. "You are right. You wouldn't be. By all means, carry on." She smiled sweetly.

"Right, see? I.." He started saying before the words registered. Then he stopped abruptly and looked into her eyes, the smile vanished from his lips. "Did you just say th..-?"

"Alec," she interrupted, laying a finger on his lips, "Shut up and kiss me already."

He blinked once before smiling brightly "Your wish is my command, Ma'am." He raised both his hands to frame her face and kissed her. First softly, sweetly, his thumbs caressing her cheekbones. Then his body shifted as he deepened the kiss. She kissed him right back, feeling the hunger in her grow. She felt the butterflies start their frantic fluttering inside her stomach and moaned softly.

One of his hands traveled lightly down her neck and lingered there for a moment before continuing its way. Suddenly, he stopped and took a step back, the hand resting on top of her black cat-burgling outfit, just below the neck. He expertly put two fingers down the neckline and retrieved the object he had touched under the fabric.

"I can't believe you are wearing this." He said looking at the gleaming diamonds sparkling in his hands. "We were facing the end of Mankind and all that and you had time to put on this necklace?"

"Well, the father of my baby went through a lot of trouble to get it, figured I might as well ..." She smiled as she watched his face light up. It had been like a tacit agreement for them both, but she knew he appreciated her actually saying it out loud.

His mouth came down on hers fiercely again, his left fingers pulling at the necklace, the right hand entangled in her hair. 

She pressed herself to him, savoring the texture of the lean body outlined before her. He was so incredibly hot, and strong and sexy. Her arms went around his neck of their own accord. Not that she would have wanted to stop them, had she had the chance. She clung to him and flung her legs around him. He took her weight easily, barely shifting his stance, his right arm going around her back.

"Alec?" she mumbled when she got a chance to breathe.

"Hmm?" He was too busy nibbling at her neck to actually form words.

"You think we should.. oh..." She choked on the words when he bit the sensitive skin just above the necklace he was still holding.

"Yeah?" He asked.

It took her a few moments to remember what she had been about to say. Right! "We should go somewhere ... uhm ... more private?" It was really hard to think when he was doing just _that. _Damn, he was good at it.

"Okay." He said, his lips going back to hers and started walking towards the door, carrying her easily. 

"Alec!" She protested.

"Yeah?" He mumbled again, trailing light kisses along her jaw.

"Put me" she groaned when he finally reached her earlobe, "down." She managed to finish. 

He made a protesting sound but finally lowered her to her feet. "Fine! But you better run, cause this is pretty... noticeable, as well as uncomfortable."

* * *

Alec smiled as he watched her giggle and race up the street into HQ, where she proceeded to ignore everyone as she walked towards the main office. It wasn't the most private of places, but it had a door, and since she and Alec had been living at Sandeman's before the whole thing started, this was where they had bunked down whenever any of them got a chance to sleep in the last days. She reached the doorway and turned around. He was but a step behind her. He smiled predatorily at her and was leaning down to claim her mouth again when Dix's voice came from somewhere behind him.

"Hey, Alec, can you take a look at this? We are getting several calls from different people through Eyes Only and WKNN and they are requesting to talk to you or Max." 

Alec groaned, "Uhm... okay tell them that... shit, I cannot think very well right now." He mumbled. How did people expect him to have a coherent thought? Not only was the hottest woman on earth beckoning him to have sex with her, but she had also just admitted that she loved him... in a very 'Max' sort of way. He had been right long ago, she did choke on the words.

"Dix can take care of it." The temptress said in a sultry voice.

"You think? Maybe we ought to..-"

"Alec? Do you wanna do this? Or are we waiting for the," she paused and looked at him from underneath dark eyelashes, "_right time_?"

Alec blinked his astonishment and then a smile spread on his lips as he shook his head. He could not believe she would actually tease him about that time in the closet.

Was it any wonder he was completely head over heels in love with her?

"Dix!" he shouted, "Tell them they'll have to wait. We will be busy."

"But.." was the last thing he heard as he used his foot to slam the door closed.

* * *

When Luke came back to headquarters, he watched Dix standing in front of the office's door, a hand in the air as if about to knock. Luke watched his very pale complexion wrinkle into a frown and then watched him turn around and head his way. 

As Dix saw him, he casually asked, "Hey, did you ever finish setting up that sound system in here?"

Luke nodded enthusiastically. "I did. Why? Are we having a party?" Not that he would complain.

Mole guffawed, "Yeah, right. _Some _people are having a party alright. We just weren't invited."

"Come on, admit it. You are just jealous because it's not you and Blondie over there, making all the noise." Lyon teased him, quickly retreating to escape Mole's reach.

Luke looked at Dix, confusion clear in his face. Dix simply said, "Let's just say, a lot of us have pretty sensitive hearing. Loud music will help ... protect it."

Luke still looked puzzled when everyone else started to laugh.

* * *


	23. Prologue

****

Tough Call

Prologue

Alec leaned on the railing overlooking what was known in the transgenic community as 'HQ'. In reality, since Sandeman had been inside this place and could inform others, one of the first things they'd done was relocate the nerve center of all transgenic activities. They had actually found another building that had been much more appropriate to be used as a command post anyway. It was underground, and the only two accesses - at least the apparent ones- were through tunnels, one of them from this very building. And they had decided to retain this room here as a recreational room, both for sentimental and tactical reasons. Since one of the tunnels was through here, that meant a lot of them were still coming and going into this building, which was rather convenient to make anyone doing surveillance from the outside believe it was still transgenic-central. In addition, its being the recreational area ensured the constant presence of bodies at all times in case their watchers were using thermal scanners. 

Some people might say they were being overly paranoid. They just considered it routine.

Alec watched everyone with intense eyes. Everyone was perfectly content. 

Ralph was sitting with another X6, eating what appeared to be about five pounds of chips, and yapping endlessly. He frowned trying to remember the other girl's name. She was a willowy, freckled girl with dark long braids. Designation 902. He briefly pondered on the fact that after all this time in the outside, it was still easier for him to remember designations instead of names. Training, he supposed. 

Lizzie and Joe were sitting on the next couch over, practically devouring each other. Their commander -as they called him whenever they thought he wasn't listening- smiled ruefully, remembering the argument of gigantic proportions those two had unknowingly caused.

It had all been Logan's fault, actually. He had come to TC to ask for some info or other and had watched the two X6s making out like crazy - they'd just started their 'romance'- and had been horrified that they (Max and Alec) were allowing these two children to behave like that. Alec had been rather amused. Sure, they couldn't be over 15 or 16 years old, but wasn't it natural for kids that age to want to be with another person that they liked? Besides, Logan had been after Max, who had to be at least ten years younger, and he hadn't found that the least bit horrifying, right? Logan had been livid, and although she clearly saw Alec's point - she'd had a hard time hiding her smile- Max had tried to placate Logan, as usual. That was, until Logan asked what would happen if the 'little girl' went into heat, which Max did seem to find a little bit disturbing. 

It all would have gone great, except Nicole had chosen that exact time to pass by and say in her usual no-nonsense voice, "X6s don't go into heat, they fixed that problem back at Manticore." Which had managed to ease Logan's mind a bit, but had caused a major incident when Max recalled a certain conversation in a bar when a certain X5 had convinced her to move in with him 'just in case' that very event was to happen. The only thing that had finally let him off the hook was that he reminded her that he had promised to be honest _after_ that incident. Alec chuckled now. The make up sex had been worth the trouble, and it wasn't as if Max and he were not arguing all the time about everything anyway. They just couldn't resist it.

Nicole's long strides distracted him as he watched her come out of the tunnel access and look around until she found Joshua. She went straight to the dog-guy and started giving him instructions on some remodeling that had to be done on another one of the buildings. Joshua was in charge of such things, and he was doing a hell of a job so far, making every room he touched in Terminal City into a hospitable and nice place to be. Some new transgenics had to be on their way and that was probably the reason Nicole was carrying such a request. 

TC had really become transgenic central in the past few months. The humans still didn't like them, and the police were still guarding the outside fences. To avoid incidents, they said. In reality it was probably to keep an eye on them. By now, they had surely come to realize what they should have in the first place: This was a highly trained, superior army, ready to come into action anytime, anywhere, with very little notice. What they had pulled off during the whole Familiar fiasco was something no other armed force in the world could have. At least, not without deploying thousands of soldiers and tons of equipment, which would have compromised the mission's security and of course, secrecy. Negotiations were discreetly taking place between the transgenics and what was formerly known as the UN. They wanted to have the transgenic's aid whenever there was a crisis, and felt that the transgenics would make unparalleled peacekeeping troops. The transgenics were listening, but their position was clear and non-negotiable. They would pick their own fights and they would decide when to get involved in human fights and when not to. But they would allow the international committee to have discreet 'unauthorized' leaks into the press that the transgenics were on side. That fact alone might diffuse a few crises before they came to be.

Of course, the other side of the whole Familiar affair was that now every transgenic around the world was virtually under his command. Actually, also under Max's, but none of them trusted Max much, and Max left both the strategic and the tactical decisions up to him. She had admitted herself that she hated planning things. She was more a spur of the moment kind of person. She was great at that, he had to admit. She was able to make the most badly thought out plans and the most unlikely situations turn into successes. That was just his Max. So she was the one that went out the most, she planned all the little burglary missions -hey! they still needed to eat too!- and she spoke to the press whenever there was a need. They just loved her. Who wouldn't?

Nicole ran everything inside Terminal City, though. She had a natural air of command and everyone felt comfortable following her orders. Well, everyone except Max and his friend Biggs. Biggs was still protesting whenever he had a chance that Nicole's aura was keeping other possible ladies away, but it was plain to see he didn't really mind. Alec just nodded at him and made sympathetic noises whenever he started talking about other women. His friend couldn't see it yet, but despite all his protestations, he was falling for the gray-haired X5 fast. Alec knew. He'd been there. And he wouldn't trade where he was at now for anything in the world.

Just then he sensed the object of his thoughts, an instant before she entered 'HQ', followed by a couple of X8 that were looking up at her adoringly. The highest influx of transgenics into TC were kids, X8s and X6s. X5s remained scattered around the world. They were better at disguise and more productive that way. 

The blonde little girl giggled at something Max said. She was so very good with kids. They all loved her and it was a rare time that she was able to be outside command center but within the City without at least one little rascal in tow. And to think she still wondered whether she'd be a good mother...

A proud smile touched his lips as he watched her. She was wearing a pair of tight dark blue jeans and a cream-colored T-shirt, that clung to her figure. Everyone kept telling her to hurry up, that they wanted to see the belly grow. How could they be so blind? Couldn't they see the changes? Then again, he was way more familiar with her body than anyone else he figured with what he knew had to be a very silly grin.

He was actually torn between two conflicting wishes. He wanted to keep seeing Max this way, to watch the changes; but he also wanted the baby to be born now, to look at it, touch it, hold it. It was very strange how he could have such strong feelings for a little person he had never even seen, but he did, and it felt great.

Overall, TC wasn't a bad place at all to bring their kid into the world. Some of the 5s and 6s were working on the outside. Normal had nearly had a heart attack when he learned his golden boy was a trannie, but he'd come to accept it, and after all, he'd also become a hero of a sort. So he didn't mind having genetically enhanced messengers, seeing as he'd lost a few employees. Max, Alec, Nicole and Biggs were too likely to be recognized and too busy anyway, and Sketchy was now an independent correspondent for the major newspapers in Seattle. His articles were read all over the world and were hanging both here in 'HQ' and, believe it or not, Normal's office.

So, yeah, humans still didn't trust them. They did live in what was considered a toxic wasteland, but it wasn't toxic for them at all and it did keep the humans out. They trained everyday, everyone had their chores, and they were a nice little community.

It wasn't the ideal place to bring a baby into the world, but then again, it beat the hell out of the place they all had grown up in.

He still knew not everything was settled, and he was still completely alert all the time. He had a lot of people to take care of now. And though he rationally knew everything was okay for now, he had been trained to not make assumptions. 

But he could relax for a while. Whatever came, they'd be ready for it. In the meantime, he had a lovely woman, he was about to have a baby with her, and friends surrounded him. 

And that was it.

He climbed down the stairs just as Mole and Biggs came into the room, arguing, as usual.

"Yeah, right, you just want to go check the weapons. Sure." Biggs was saying. "And the fact that Asha will be there has nothing to do with it. Uh huh."

"Oh, shut up, like you are one to talk. In fact, did you ask the lady boss permission to go check them out?" Mole challenged back.

"Why, do _you_ do that?"

"Nah, that's what you are here for."

Alec laughed. It was like this all the time. He raised both his hands when they looked at him for support. He wasn't stepping into that argument. Instead he walked towards Max and placed his arms around her, stealing a kiss.

Mole snorted, "Look who we are turning to for help."

"You are right, buddy." Biggs agreed dramatically, "Poor bastard."

Alec just smiled at them, before turning back to Max to kiss her properly. 

Three minutes later, everyone around them was still whistling. Hey, he could hold his breath for well over four minutes, no sweat. Why kill the joy?

Yes, he would continue to enjoy the peace. As long as it lasted.

* * *

Sandeman stared balefully at the double-thick bars blocking his view of the stars. Smarter than humans? Even smarter than him? No. He firmly believed that one could not create something more perfect than oneself. 

Sandeman leaned back, settled more comfortably on the cot. X5-494 was *wrong*.

Now he just had to think of the right way to prove it. 

* * *

A/N: Ooooookkkkay. That's it. I sincerely hope you guys enjoyed it. I want to thank Pai, because even when this has developed into way more than what you had in mind, it was still that challenge that inspired me to start. All the people who have read and all my reviewers, every single comment was helpful! And I cannot end this without a huge, HUGE hug for Goblie, for the constant support and feedback, and, naturally, Infie: This story would not have been without your help and support, not to mention your beta services ;). *HUGS*


	24. Turnabout or fairplay?

A/N: well.. I just couldn't resist. Ever since I wrote '... and Turns' (Chapter 22 and the last of TC) the idea of 'what if' never left my mind. I mean, I did like that ending, but... 

Hope you guys don't hate it. But even if you do... I couldn't help it.

A/N2: Infie: thank you so very much! We both know even if I was thinking about this, it was only your insisting that made me decide to write it. So thanks.

****

Tough Call

Turnabout... or Fairplay?

X5-882 watched the doctors carefully, making sure no one tried to pull any tricks. They had all expressed their happiness that the vaccine had arrived, but he didn't want to take any chances. He'd been warned there could be Familiars trying to sabotage their plans.

He had been on a mission inside the US main Military forces when Manticore had been torched. Gathering some intel. Manticore didn't trust the people in Washington to provide them with the real deal, so they had sent soldiers to infiltrate all of the branches of the armed forces as soon as they were old enough to pass for 18 year olds. 882 – or Mikey as he was called on the outside – had been in the ranks for over 7 years now. The silver leaf on his shoulder straps identified him as a Lieutenant Colonel, and he really enjoyed it. So he had stayed. 

When he had seen the Eyes Only broadcast he'd contacted the transgenics behind the message and then arranged for transportation. All of a sudden, a flight to China to re-deploy some units had been imperative, as well as a couple more planes to other locations around the world. Of course, since he was on an Army mission, he was able to carry all the weaponry he wanted. He was after all, expected to.

He was hoping it wouldn't come to fighting, though. His eyes were continuously shifting from one Asian to the other, making sure none of them were doing something they shouldn't. 

Everyone needed to take this vaccine.

* * *

Dr. Sandeman took a couple of seconds to bask in the palpable silence that followed his statement. 

First he looked at the transgenics in front of him. He did not want to miss their reactions. Their Manticore instructors would have been so proud of them. Twenty Nine faces had simultaneously turned blank. Completely. As surprised as they must be, it was completely impossible to tell from their faces; except that the stillness itself told him lots.

After that, he took a look at the Familiars in black behind him. They were also sporting guarded faces, but the surprise was still apparent in their eyes.

He left the robed leaders for the last. The man, Fen'el'Kahn, was frowning at him. The kid was glaring a very psycho like stare, it was the same expression he'd had since he'd arrived, but instead of centering it at Max, it was now divided between the female x5 and Sandeman himself. 

Ximena's eyes, on the other hand, were beginning to gleam. Yes, of all the 'next generation' of leaders, she'd always been the smartest. She might not have approved of his plans had she known them in advance, but she definitely appreciated them now. She remained calm, however. A High Priestess _never_ lost her temper or raised her voice. He smiled. He'd always liked Ximena.

"Explain yourself." Kent demanded coldly.

Sandeman shook his head. "David, David, David..." he said, using his 'human' name only because he knew the other man would hate it - the _Familiar_ name stated his position as a leader of the cult, whereas 'David' stated... nothing. "What is there to explain? Even these kids," he waved in the direction of the silent transgenics, "understand what I did."

A vein started to tick in Kent's jaw, but he asked in an even voice. "Are you telling me these... beasts... aided you in contaminating the entire planet?"

"Well, they did." Sandeman smiled, "They just didn't know it. They were under the impression they were saving humanity." 

"So you were responsible for the outbreak in Atlanta." The Priestess stated. Sandeman smiled smugly. "We were wondering about that. Exactly what purpose did that serve?"

Sandeman looked at Alec and raised an eyebrow, the invitation evident in his eyes. 

"It was a media drive and a test to secure our trust." Alec answered flatly. "He knew we would suspect him. He also knew we would have started working on the vaccine by then. So he creates a small outbreak. People panic. All the media arrives. We have the vaccine so we take it there, or actually _he_ does, so he gets all the credit and makes sure _you_ guys know who is responsible for this. They try the cure and it works. People start realizing this doctor is cool, the media gets wind of this, people start seeking this vaccine, _our_ minds are put at ease. When the real thing -the one you guys orchestrated- comes along, the vaccine that _he_ prepared, is ready to be sent out. And he has an army of highly trained, genetically enhanced soldiers to make sure it gets to everyone, whatever it takes."

Benjamin nodded, smiling. These kids were so good. It really was a shame they would all have to die.

"If you are so highly trained, so very superior and intelligent, how could you have been fooled like that?" David asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Easily. He never lied to us." Max answered, still completely expressionless, but for the same slight light of understanding that matched the one in Alec's eyes, and the slight trace of bitterness she was unable to hide. 

"He knew we would be able to tell if he was lying, so he didn't." Alec finished. 

Sandeman smiled blandly at him. "I wouldn't have dreamed of insulting your intelligence by lying. After all, *I* created you, I know what you are capable of."

"You've always been so full of yourself, Benjamin." David said, looking at him with disdain. "You always thought you were smarter than us, but you left a tiny little detail out," he raised an eyebrow.

"What's that?"

"Atlanta. All those people in Atlanta have received the cure, the one these creatures made. They will not take this other vaccine. They will all survive."

Sandeman grinned. "They are irrelevant, David."

"Irrelevant?" The tall Familiar repeated.

Instead of answering, Sandeman turned to look at Max and Alec. Alec's left eyebrow was slightly furrowed, indicating that he was thinking more than likely. It went back to its initial position. Sandeman's grin got bigger. "See, David? He already knows. Care to do the honors?" He asked Alec with a grand inclination of his head. He never stopped to think that if he hadn't wanted to, he would never have been able to see Alec apparently thinking and then reaching a conclusion. As subtle as it had been, Alec could have been able to do it without showing anything. But that never crossed the doctor's mind. Or Max's, for that matter.

"They are irrelevant, because they are only a couple of million people, all isolated in one area. They'll be confused and terrified. And they are weaker than you." Alec recited. "And even when they stop being scared and decide to fight for their lives - that is, if you haven't killed them by then -, who will they fight against?"

"Us. It'll be against us." Max spat out. "The vaccine was made out of transgenic blood, by transgenics. So they'll fight us. And it doesn't matter who wins. There'll be casualties on both sides, and which ever side loses, will be one less problem for you guys to worry about."

"Brilliant, is it not?" Sandeman asked. 

"Very well thought out, I would say." Alec conceded with a nod.

"Yeah, yeah, you are a genius, whatever." Biggs inserted dismissively.

"I'd like to think so." He answered. He tried to take the self-righteousness from his voice, but wasn't sure he had managed. "Did you kids by any chance take the vaccine?" A brief shake of the head was all the answer he got. "Oh, well, was worth a shot. It kicks in about three or four days after receiving the dose – I didn't want people to panic and stop taking the vaccine, after all."

"Of course." Nicole spoke for the first time since he'd arrived.

Sandeman smiled at her. "You've been wonderful, dear. I couldn't have asked for anyone better to have on my side all these years and to carry along all my messages."

-------------------

Anita looked at her side of the street, which was busier then ever. With an endless line of people that went on for as far as the eye could see. 

Anita sighed and looked down at the tiny little tanned hand pulling from her calf-length skirt. "Mami, me va a dolé'?" 

"No, bebé, es sólo como un mosquito. Pero ya verás como te pones bien apenitas la recibas, ¿si?" Anita reassured her little boy that it wasn't going to hurt, and that this vaccine would make him all right.

Anita looked back up at the streets of Asunción, Paraguay and sighed again.

Across the world, inside a spotlessly clean hospital waiting room in Frankfurt, Ulf Schmidt was glancing at his clock again. Such an inconvenience... 

"Bitte, setzen Sie sich, wir werden balde ihnen bei Namen rufen." The nurse said again. And sure enough, someone else kept calling out names, just as she said they would. But there were over 500 people around, just in this waiting room.

He sighed once more and went back to his laptop just as the anchorwoman announced that there was more on the Familiar Virus. Great, the speech again, Ulf thought with a shake of his head. He ignored the screen and tried to focus on his work.

-------------------

After hearing the doctor's last words Nicole remained impassive as usual and listened on. "Thank you, doctor," she said finally, noticing he was waiting for a reply, "was just doing my job."

"Indeed you were." He chuckled. "You never change, huh? Always the perfect soldier." He said in a patronizing voice. It made her wonder for a few moments if some sarcasm had slipped into her voice. The absurdity of the thought made her dismiss it instantaneously. 

"It's what I am, sir." She just answered.

She watched Sandeman hesitate for a second. She knew what he was thinking, how much to reveal. Leaving the doubt hanging would be the wisest choice. But she knew he wouldn't. He had been waiting for this moment for many years and he needed to be the star of the show. It was okay by her. It would not matter one way or the other. Not anymore.

"I guess you want to know if she was aware of my plan, huh?" Sandeman asked smiling. Nicole placed a mental check in her mind. Humans. 

Max seemed to decide this was the perfect time for her sassy self to return. "Not really." She said, one hand on her hips. Nicole had to hand it to her. She had to be furious and pretty desperate, but she wasn't letting anything on.

Sandeman chuckled. "Well, she wasn't." He said, "She was told the same carefully selected truths all along. Bits and pieces here and there. I knew she'd put them all together once she met you, even when she didn't entirely believe me back then." He paused to look at Nicole, "And she did not disappoint me."

"That was what I was trained to do." Nicole replied evenly.

"Yes, dear, I know. So don't feel bad, any of you. I knew exactly what buttons to push." He said, that patronizing voice again. 

"All of this is cool and all, but now what?" Biggs suddenly exclaimed from behind the bulletproof door of his truck. "Can we start the shootout to see how many of each other we can kill?" he asked cheekily.

"As we all said before, what good would that do?"

"Well... we'd get to see all your ugly mugs disappear..." Mole countered.

"Truth, but as you know, most of you will probably survive. Would you seriously jeopardize the chance of having a more organized attack on Familiar forces in the future?"

"There'd be a few less priests...?" Biggs offered halfheartedly, vaguely aiming his shotgun at the robed figures.

"And what good will three less priests do? There are many others." Ximena said evenly.

Nicole watched Alec's crooked smirk and left eyebrow as he whispered, "Are there?"

"Ah! So you've taken care of them, huh?" Sandeman asked, unable to hide the pleasure in his voice.

"That was why the location of the main ceremony casually slipped out, wasn't it?" Alec challenged.

"Of course, of course." Sandeman conceded.

David's eyes opened wide. They looked like saucers. "You revealed the location of the ... ?"

"It will do the world good to be rid of those narrow-minded obsolete personas." Sandeman interrupted him smugly. 

"You, you.."

"Oh, shut up, David. All of this is evidently beyond you." Sandeman cut him off again. "This whole plan is way beyond anything you could have even dream of coming up with. You are no match for me. In fact, no one is. These kids are the closest there is. Then again, they were created by me."

"Yes, that is true. And that is exactly the reason you should have known better." Alec said calmly.

Sandeman looked a little surprised for a tenth of a second, but then he smiled confidently again. "Meaning?"

"Meaning that we were built to be smart, smarter than other humans. And that includes you." Alec made a light movement of his left hand and twenty semiautomatic shotguns were fired. In less than two seconds, all the black clad Familiars were down, too surprised by the sudden attack to have had time to duck back behind their cover... and now twenty nine guns were trained at the four remaining Familiars, not counting the one still resting against Regina's temple. "Did you really think you could just walk out of here after what you just did? After what you made us help you with?" He paused, his expression blank. Max watched him in awe. He looked so poised, so relaxed. And he looked so incredibly hot when he was taking charge. And she felt immediately guilty. Millions of people were about to die! "So yes, we may have helped you send that vaccine into the world, unwillingly or not." Max watched Sandeman's face become more aggravated with every syllable that came out of Alec's mouth. "But did you really believe we would just let you walk out of this?"

Max resisted the urge to nod and just plain snarl at the scientist. 

The priestess and priest looked at each other, at the bodies behind them, at Sandeman and back at the transgenics, completely at a loss for words. It had all been so sudden they hadn't had time to react yet. They had certainly not been expecting the transgenics to shoot, not when everything had seemed to be going so well.

"You have about as much of a chance as those priests dancing in that cave..." Biggs put in, smiling. "Hey, Mole! Looks like we'll get our wish with these guys after all!"

Sandeman had managed to compose himself and after a deep breath said, "You cannot kill me. You'd make a martyr out of me. After all, _I_ am the one everyone saw as responsible for the vaccine. If you kill me, I'll still be known as a hero. They'll think it was all a plan of yours to get rid of humans who hate you. That you tricked me."

"Hmm... he does have a point there, doesn't he?" Dix asked with a frown.

"Well, that's certainly what it looks like." Luke supplied, nodding enthusiastically. Max had to give them points for their acting. She really didn't understand how they could just stand there and talk so easily. All human life on earth was going to disappear! How could they remain so calm? How could they.. Then again, anyone looking at her would think the same, probably. They were all probably as outraged as she was. Just – as she was- not showing it.

"Indeed, that's what it _ looks_ like." Alec drawled, not taking his intense hazel eyes off the doc. 

"See that over there? Looks like a crack on the ceiling?" Max supplied bitterly, "Camera. That over there?" She pointed to another dark spot on a wall. "And of course, these." She finished signaling a button on her black leather jacket. "The great Eyes Only is recording the whole thing." 

"And over there, behind the wall, is lovely Tricia Adams, reporting live for WKNN and the whole wide world!" Biggs informed readily. 

"Amazing how you never expect the same tricks you pull to be used against yourself, huh?" Alec asked softly. He was smirking lightly, but Max could see the iciness of his stare. "But you are right. We don't want to kill you. In fact, we'll just let you go. Right out there where people are starting to pound at Terminal City's gate. Let them decide what your fate shall be. Let them pass judgement." 

"You think they'll listen to you after what you just did?" David raised his voice and pointed at the fallen bodies of the dead Familiars.

"This was a war, and we did what we had to. But, yes, we know they'll still think of us as monsters, so what else is new? You guys, however, won't be so lucky."

"Now Andrew and Jessie will escort you to the limits of Terminal City. I'm sure there'll be quite a crowd waiting for you." Max finished with an ironic smile.

"Now wait a..-"

"Meeting's adjourned. Get moving." Alec said unceremoniously, and then, as an afterthought, added "Yo, buddy, make sure you let them out on the West side, where the people have a TV. That should be interesting."

Biggs chuckled, "You are the boss, boss."

As she watched the Familiars being led away, Max moved a little to be by Alec's side and looked up at him anxiously. She knew they could not show any emotions, not yet, the cameras were still rolling. But she needed to be near him, she needed his warmth, to feel his presence. Because that was the only thing that could stop her from losing her mind. All those people. Dead. Because of them. Because of _her!_

Alec seemed to sense what she was thinking, because lightly, almost imperceptibly, he brushed her arm with his. His expression did not change. But she knew he was telling her to breathe.

Mole wasn't so diplomatic about it. "Well, this sucks!" He exclaimed. It made every head turn his way. "I still think shooting 'em woulda been the thing to do."

"That would have been too easy." Alec said quietly. "Let them face the humans, let them go against the very people they just sentenced to death."

It wasn't so much the words as the look in his eyes when he said it that caused chills to run through Max's body. "Besides, it would have made us the monsters everyone thinks we are." She said, raising her voice a little. 

"Right, cause when they see this face they won't still think that of me." Mole smiled, his teeth pressing the cigar. "Well, those who are still alive." He mumbled softly with a grimace.

Max managed a fleeting smile as she watched Mole go ruffle Lizzie's hair, and the rest of the transgenics shake their heads. 

She turned her head to look at Alec beside her. He was looking at her with an unreadable expression. 

She silently looked back at him. 

Later.

-------------

Sketchy's camera made its typical snapping sound, some yards away of where the action had taken place. And that was the image that would be printed on the cover of most papers all over the world the next day. The image was so full of contrast, so innocent and at the same time chilling, the transgenics looking so young and beautiful, yet magnificent and dangerous, well armed and surrounded by camouflage and Army gear.

As if his exclusive interview were not enough by itself, he just knew this picture would go a long way, and he was the only photographer around. Sure, they would have the screen-captures, but nothing compared to a professionally taken 35mm shot. 

After tomorrow, everyone would know who Calvin S. Theodore was. 

---------------

"So what about Atlanta? From what you said, this vaccine is carrying the virus, but those people there did not take that vaccine, they took the one you had made, right?" Sketch asked, narrowing his eyes. 

"I was wondering when you'd get to that." Alec said. "They will make it." He turned to Sketchy and nodded. "They will make it. And so will you." When Max gasped, he turned back to her, a sheepish smile on his lips. "Nicole would not have let me detour any of the vaccine from the hospitals they were destined for. Not to give to our 'friends' in advance. You know it was not very... professional. So... I kinda used some of what was left of the vaccine _we_ had made to give to you to give to them."

Sketchy blinked twice and then lost all his professionalism for an instant to whisper "I'll be damned!"

"Amen, boy!" Cindy exhaled. 

She watched Max's eyes fill with tears as a beautiful smile lighted her face. She smiled at Cindy and grabbed her hand, before flinging herself at Alec and kissing him soundly on the lips. Suddenly she tore herself away from him and hit him hard on his shoulder. "You idiot! You stupid, imbecile, moron, idiot..-"

"You already said that." He put in.

"Argh! I cannot believe you! How could you wait 'til now to tell us?"

Alec looked at her seriously and asked softly, gently "Would you rather have me say it out there? Where the cameras were transmitting live for the world? Do you think all those people out there would have enjoyed hearing how four people here would survive while they were all just sentenced to death?"

Cindy watched the horror darken Max's eyes. And she herself felt her spirits darken. And then came the guilt, because deep down, she was glad she was not one of those people.

Max nodded and reached out her hand to touch one of Alec's. Then they both turned back to Sketchy, looking splendid and strong. 

Sketchy's goofy smile had disappeared from his lips, but his attitude was also much more confident. 

"Right," he cleared his throat. "So, the people who took the old vaccine, the one you made, will survive. The people who took the doctor's one will not. What about the people that haven't taken any?"

"Well, we managed to stop some of the Familiars before they dropped the original virus into the watercourses. But there's no way we stopped all of them. Especially out of the States." He was looking blank again now. Soldier Alec was back.

"The people who took none of the vaccines are exposed to that virus." Max continued, the same soldier like demeanor.

"Whoa, whoa. How 'bout us, the ones who took that first one? Will we be exposed to the mutated bitch?" Cindy 

"Nope, they won't. I mean, the mutated virus is only present in these new vaccines. So if they do not take them, they won't have a problem. At least, as far as we know. We'd have to do some more checking, but from what Dix told us, this new mutation, just like the first one, is not airborne, and apparently it's very unstable, unless it's in a alkaline environment, like this vaccine." Alec announced evenly.

"Okay, I guess." She nodded.

"So I guess right now, all that matters is letting people know they don't have to take this vaccine, right?" Sketchy asked.

"Right, thing is, most people already did if things went according to plan. Definitely here in the States. In the rest of the world...who knows?" Alec nodded.

"We will make a broadcast as soon as we finish here." Max said. It was not going to be easy.

"Can you make some more of the 'good' vaccine?" Sketchy pressed a little more.

"Well actually, yes, but we will not say anything about it. Not right now. Max has given a lot of blood lately, so we can't just take more right now." Alec raised one hand to stop Max from talking. "You can't, all right?" he told her. "And even if she could, it'd take a while to have them ready and shipped. By that time, the virus –the original one- will have done its work." 

Cindy missed the rest of Sketchy's interrogation, she was lost in her own thoughts. Sure, she'd survive, apparently. But that son-of-a-bitch doctor had just condemned most of the planet into a painful, horrible death.

----------- 

Nicole's approach after the humans left distracted them.

Distractions were good. She did not want to think.

"I'll be finishing things over at HQ." The gray-haired X5 delivered smoothly and with no emotion at all, before turning to leave. "We have to reinforce the perimeter."

"Well good thing one of us can keep their head cool." Max commented on Nicole's lack of emotion.

Alec moved closer to her and ran a finger over her cheek. "It's okay Max." He said softly.

Max started to tremble as the last of the transgenics left the room. She had seen Alec's gesture to them and was grateful, she wasn't sure how much longer she could have held it in. 

"They are going to die, Alec. All of them." She whispered shakily.

"Not all of them. And it's not your fault. You did what you could to help those people. You cannot be blamed for believing him. He was very clever about it." He was hugging her now as a big teardrop started its way down her right cheek. "It is not your fault, Max."

They remained like that for a few minutes. She did not want to let him go. She needed his warmth, she needed to feel his strength. 

After a while, he gently pushed her away to look at her face. "There are some things we can still do, okay? And we'll do them now. And we still have some Familiars to hunt down. And we will." He said resolutely, "As for the rest... all of us are safe. And our friends are too. And you are carrying a little baby that will be born in a world where he can be free. Think about that, okay? I know it's not much. But it's a start." 

Max looked up at him and for a timeless instant she was lost in the depths of those serious hazel eyes. He was right. She needed to focus on the positive side, on what they could still do. On what they had to do. And on her baby. _Their_ baby. She nodded and watched him smile. He was so good to her. 

"Come on." He said, taking her hand and turning to leave.

"Alec," She stopped him as he was heading for the door. When he turned back to her she just said, really, really softly. "I love you." She watched him inhale deeply and then the most beautiful smile she'd ever seen on his lips lit up his features.

"So do I, Max. So do I." He kissed her briefly, just barely touching her lips with his. But she felt the tremors run up and down her spine.

A few moments later, they entered headquarters. Everyone was in position and ready, waiting for them. It was going to be hard. But they'd deal with whatever was to come.

* * *


	25. Another ending?

****

Tough Call

Alec leaned on the railing overlooking what was known in the transgenic community as 'HQ'. They had decided to retain this room as a recreational room, both for sentimental and tactical reasons. Since one of the tunnels to access the new HQ was built through here, that meant a lot of them were still coming and going into this building, which was rather convenient to make anyone doing surveillance from the outside believe it was still transgenic-central. Some people might say they were being overly paranoid, especially considering there weren't that many people left to do surveillance. They just considered it routine.

He reflected on the fact that they were still residing in Terminal City. 

It was completely unreasonable. They had the whole city for themselves. The whole country, actually. But still, for a number of reasons, they'd stayed. Some of them were valid, like having a place where every transgenic around the world would know to go to in case of need, since there weren't the usual TV broadcasts anymore; the rest were more sentimental than not. This was the place were they'd all come together. Were they had decided to fight for their cause. This was... home. 

And besides, they weren't limited to the confines of the perimeter fence anymore. It was still there, but mostly for defense purposes. Transgenics could now walk around the streets of Seattle without any kind of problem. It was a new experience for them. And even though it was gross at the beginning, and kind of sad –even the toughest trannies admitted it- it was now perfectly normal.

. Logan had caused some problems, of course. He had come to TC to ask for some info or other and had watched two X6s making out like crazy – they'd just started their 'romance'- and had been horrified that they (Max and Alec) were allowing these two children to behave like that. Alec had been rather amused. Sure, they couldn't be over 15 or 16 years old, but wasn't it natural for kids that age to want to be with another person that they liked? Besides, Logan had been after Max, who had to be at least ten years younger, and he hadn't found that the least bit horrifying, right? Logan had been livid, and although she clearly saw Alec's point – she'd had a hard time hiding her smile- Max had tried to placate Logan, as usual. That was, until Logan asked what would happen if the 'little girl' went into heat, which Max did seem to find a little bit disturbing. 

It all would have gone great, except Nicole had chosen that exact time to pass by and say in her usual no-nonsense voice, "X6s don't go into heat, they fixed that problem back at Manticore." It had been a great way for Nicole to get even with him. He still remembered her accusing face and words when Max had gone to her, that day long ago, to thank her, because unintentionally or not, she had become the reason her friends were alive. She'd just looked at Alec and said, seriously. "It is always great to be used as the scapegoat in someone else's schemes." At which Max had frowned a bit but then laughed. Of course, she had totally misunderstood what Nicole meant, but that was okay with Alec. 

Negotiations were discreetly taking place between the transgenics and what was left of the humans. Most humans had left their homes and moved to Atlanta. Transgenics guarded that area. There were still Familiars out there, and humans would be the first thing they'd attack. Alec knew humans did not exactly accept them, but the ones in Atlanta knew that they were alive only because of that vaccine the transgenics had made for them. They'd watched in the news how even people that did not take the contaminated vaccine died anyway, because of the other virus, the one in the water supplies. 

Of course, the other side of the whole Familiar affair was that now every transgenic around the world was virtually under his command. Actually, also under Max's, but none of them trusted Max much, and Max left both the strategic and the tactical decisions up to him. She had admitted herself that she hated planning things. She was more a spur of the moment kind of person. She was great at that, he had to admit. She was able to make the most badly thought out plans and the most unlikely situations turn into successes. That was just his Max. So she was the one that went out the most, she planned all the little 'food gathering' missions –hey! they still needed to eat too!- and she spoke to the press –Sketchy and Miss Adams, who was back in Atlanta- whenever there was a need. They just loved her. Who wouldn't?

Just then he sensed the object of his thoughts, an instant before she entered 'HQ', followed by a couple of X8 that were looking up at her adoringly. The highest influx of transgenics into TC were kids, X8s and X6s, and they all loved Max.

Those kids had been a blessing in getting Max out of her misery. She'd been completely depressed the first couple of weeks after the solstice, as more and more news about dying people arrived at TC. He had hated to see her like that. It even made himself question his decisions when she sank into the deepest of her sorrows.

But when he watched her like this, with kids around, smiling, happy, _free_, he knew he'd done the right thing.

It wasn't for the reasons some of the others would have, mostly the older transgenics: that intense hatred of humans. He didn't hate them. They just weren't his concern.

All he cared about was the safety of his people, and above all, that of Max and the baby. So if the humans (because Familiar or not, Sandeman had still been human) decided to kill each other, how was it their concern? 

Sandeman thought he had fooled them, but of course he'd known what the doctor was up to. Did he really expect them not to check the contents of those vials? Please! But _he_ chose to say he was saving the world. And Alec had asked Max if she thought they should do as the doctor said. She had asked him if he thought the doc was telling the truth, and Alec had honestly told her that yes, he was not lying. What he didn't mention was that even though he was not lying, he wasn't saying what Max thought he was. But Max hadn't asked that, had she? After that, Max had given the go ahead, and what were they supposed to do? They helped the doctor.

And after all, the humans taking that vaccine took one problem out of Alec's head. He had millions less to worry about when it came to the safety of Max and his baby.

Some people might consider it murder, or murder by indifference. But the transgenics had never forced anyone to take that vaccine, hadn't even _told_ them to. _They_ had chosen to believe the doctor. 

Nicole had summarized quite well that one day at Crash. _None of their business_.

Now he could relax for a while. Whatever came, they'd be ready for it. In the meantime, he had a lovely woman, he was about to have a baby with her, and friends surrounded him. And they were all safe. At least, as safe as they could be.

And that was it.

He climbed down the stairs just as Mole and Biggs came into the room, arguing, as usual.

"Yeah, right, you just want to go check the weapons. Sure." Biggs was saying. "And the fact that Asha will be there has nothing to do with it. Uh huh."

"Oh, shut up, like you are one to talk. In fact, did you ask the lady boss permission to go check them out?" Mole challenged back.

"Why? Do _you_ do that?"

"Nah, that's what you are here for."

Alec laughed. It was like this all the time. He raised both his hands when they looked at him for support. He wasn't stepping into that argument. Instead he walked towards Max and placed his arms around her, stealing a kiss.

Mole snorted, "Look who we are turning to for help."

"You are right, buddy." Biggs agreed dramatically, "Poor bastard."

Alec just smiled at them, before turning back to Max to kiss her properly. 

Three minutes later, everyone around them was still whistling. Hey, he could hold his breath for well over four minutes, no sweat. Why kill the joy?

Yes, he would continue to enjoy the peace. As long as it lasted.

They'd worked hard for it.

* * *

A/N: Ooooookkkkay. That's it. I sincerely hope you guys enjoyed it. Thanks again to all the people who have read and all my reviewers, you guys are great. And I cannot end this without a huge, HUGE hug for my very good friend Infie, for the constant support and feedback, the patience and cutting abilities, and her being...her. *HUGS*


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